Of Angels and Serpents
by Nyhratak
Summary: Alice stays in Underland, but with a price. She meets a man - a man who captures her mind. But she soon begins to understand that not everything is as forthright as she has been lead to believe, and falls prey to a madman's perverse fantasies about her and a land without life. She supposes it is a good thing she has the Hatter to provide some solace... A/H. Dark!fic. Angsty.
1. Prologue

**Um...hi? This is the prologue, as the name so clearly states. The actual chapters are much longer than this. I simply felt that I hadn't explained something beforehand, and felt the need to put this small intro in...This does not follow the movie's end at all by the way.**

**Prologue: Needed in Underland**

Everyone had dropped their weapons; an air of almost disturbing peace had overcome the entire battlefield. The only sound that still broke the silence was the distant screams of the defeated Red Queen and Knave, both of which pleaded to be separated from each other by some means. Both sides had joined, it seemed, coming together to vanquish a common enemy and tyrant subsequent to the confirmation of the monster's death. The Jabberwocky's head lay motionless upon the checkered ground, a pool of purple blood surrounding it. The red eyes that had once held so much ferocity had gone out, like a candle in the wind-there was nothing to fight over anymore, one of the Champions had been slain. Beings of all kinds grouped together around the giant reptilian creature's remains, and in the middle of it all, closest to the mouth, with jaws bared even still, stood Alice.

Her armor glinted dully in the muted light, and her untidy hair hung all around her shoulders in the tousled mess that everyone had come to expect. She had let her sword fall to the ground, weakened momentarily, and stared out across the many rows of strange soldiers. All her friends had appeared before her, and she took time to look at each and every one of them, feeling highly conflicting feelings inside. Somewhere, deep within her, she knew that going home was inevitable, but to leave directly after completing the task given to her? That would be entirely ignorant and egotistical, everything that her family wished for her to become. Alice saw the White Queen, in all her glory, with the newly claimed crown atop her head, come lightly towards her, but in reality, stopped in front of the Jabberwocky head. It soon was apparent that she was collecting blood that dripped from its fangs into a small vile, and Alice's mind went into a confused whirlwind. _This must be the way home_...She thought to herself, backing away only slightly.

When at last the queen had filled the vile, she stood gracefully and extended her thin arm to the young woman. Alice's brow furrowed with uncertainty, but she took it slowly nonetheless. The glass felt cold in her small fingers, and as she stared at it, awfully hesitant, there came a voice...a sad, quiet voice. It belonged to her dearest friend. It belonged to the Hatter, who sounded as though the world had suddenly turned its back on him. With a sinking feeling in her heart, she faced him, clutching the vile tightly in her hand, and saw a very moving sight. His face was drained of its usual enthusiasm, and replaced with one of the most miserable expressions she had ever seen him display. "You can't leave..." Was what he had said, and his voice had caught faintly in his throat. He spoke again with even less control. "Not after everything...You've only just arrived back, you know...after so much time."

Alice did not know what to say. His words had been sincerely despondent, making her painfully aware of what all the years of isolation had done to him. He needed her even more than the others. The poor madman ought to have at least one person that understood him in the odd surreal world...imaginary or not.

"I'm afraid that-" She fought the urge to recoil at the way his striking green eyes changed to a sad blue color and dropped to his feet forlornly. Alice steadied herself mentally. "I'm afraid that the questions I need answered will become too heavy to carry, and that the things I need to do will trouble me until they are dealt with..."

"Alice," said the White Queen gently from behind, "we understand. The choice is yours to determine. No one will hold it against you if your life above Underland needs your attention. You've done what was predestined for this day, and now this is our gratitude."

Hearing this made her think even harder. Surely she must leave! Her mother and sister would be petrified if she failed to appear every again, and the Ascots might very well come after her family for her impromptu refutation of their son's proposal. Staying would put her in a very difficult position to get out of...but staying would also make her friends happy. The friends who didn't care if she ever thought about what it would be like to fly, or other nonsensical things that the society she came from would scorn her for. The world she came from was a cruel place indeed, with no room for even the slightest out-of-place statement or comment. But what of her questions? She was bound to only discover more in Underland as she grew up...if she even aged. There were just so many things she needed to do! One glance at the Hatter's face told her that all her petty concerns were dismal in comparison to what he felt about the matter. She had to make her decision.

And so, saying a silent goodbye to her family, she addressed the Hatter aloud. "Give me your hand." Alice said caringly. He raised his head and held out his arm, opening his scarred, pale fingers, eyes wide. "Keep this safe for me until the time comes when I absolutely require it..." In his palm, she placed the vile of Jabberwocky blood, and when he realized what she had done for him, he pulled her into a joyful hug in the middle of the battlefield, all the while muttering his thanks over and over into her shoulder.

She sincerely hoped that she had made the right choice...


	2. Chapter 1

**To give credit where credit is due, all characters and personalities belong firstly to Lewis Carroll, and secondly to Tim Burton, the best producer on the face of the earth!**

**Please don't ask. I really enjoyed the movie. This is based off of something I typed out on my ipod on my long bus rise. That's right. I get bored. Aaaand...this is kinda meant to have a dark feel to it, but the people involved won't be too different behavior wise.**

**REVIEWS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED. **

**Chapter 1**

Sunset came ominously over the matchless world of Underland. The sky turned a deep red, like a raging fire was burning in the atmosphere, or whatever Alice supposed it was as she sat on a balcony high above the White Queen's courtyard. Behind her, a wall of open windows harbored the entrance to a great hall, filled with white-clad partygoers. Strangely entrancing music drifted out around the young woman, and along with that, a light breeze caught tendrils of her blond curls. She sat on a bench of polished stone with one leg tucked under her and the other hanging down, swinging like a schoolgirl to the incongruity of the musical rhythms. Her mind was baffled with the memories of all she had done as of late; her eyes were unblinking, fixed on the darkening horizon.

Insecurely, Alice smoothed her dress down over her knees, casting what she hoped to be a nonchalant glance into the room beyond, where the rejoicing horde of people socialized. Folding her hands in her lap, she admired the lacy hem of her attire. It was a very pretty dress, in reality, and Alice smiled to herself privately. It had been upon her own request to arrive at the alleged "party in her honor" wearing another color besides white. Of course, it was hard to find something completely lacking in colorlessness, but with a bit of effort, she had come across a dress that fell just past the middle of her shin with a slight amount of light pink on it. The neckline was lower than what she was accustomed to, so different from what all the _proper_ ladies were wearing back home. Then, Alice had reminded herself that she had just killed a monster--sliced its sorry head strait off at that! She was undeniably incapable of being "proper"...

As she continued to listen to the music, she chanced to look over the balcony. In the center of the wide courtyard, there was a large, white, marble fountain, filled on its various levels with crystalline water that reflected the emerging stars. Naturally, this would have been a regular and calming sight, if not for a small figure standing motionless at the edge. It was a child, or at least what appeared to be one, dressed in ghostly pale robes that were clearly too spacious. She--Alice soon distinguished it to be a little girl--extended a thin hand down onto the water's rippling surface. White hair fell around the young one's shoulders, and sparkling bracelets adorned her arms. The tips of her fingers brushed the clear liquid in one graceful motion; the trail of the silken robe on her back spread out for many feet behind her. After she had withdrawn her hand from the water, something began to happen. A warm light formed in the center of the fountain, spreading until it had covered the whole adornment. Alice watched in a kind of daze, hands gripping the barrier tightly. A white cat joined the girl, perching on the flattened area on top of the short wall. Its tail flicked back and forth, matching the steady motion of Alice's foot, still moving to the ongoing music.

"Alice?" A somewhat delicate voice came from the open entrance. She turned to acknowledge the speaker, who turned out to be none other than the Mad Hatter. With one look at him, Alice noticed that even he had taken the extra step to formalize himself, looking more immaculate than she had ever seen him look before. His hair was combed nicely, similar to how she remembered from when she was little, and considerably different from the stereotypically uncontrollable tangle of vibrant orange. He wore a new pink shirt underneath an equally new light brown tailcoat with matching pants a few shades darker. The vibrant bowtie around his neck was different as well, in the form of a white background instead of black, and covered completely in happy purple and sky blue triangular-shaped flowers, all connected. A pair of long socks matched the pattern. It was a pleasant ensemble for someone who rarely took the time to properly groom himself. In the back of her mind, Alice had to wonder why she hadn't seen him before. He certainly stood out among the group of similarly dressed persons! And, of course, he held a tea cup and saucer unsteadily out in front of him, which was the most unsurprising aspect to him by far.

"Why, might I inquire, are you out here all alone?" He asked, blinking widely. She looked fleetingly back over the edge of the balcony to see if the spectacular sight was still there to behold. To her own astonishment, she saw that everything that was previously there had vanished. No girl. No light. Not even the white cat. All that remained was the fountain, lifeless compared to the magnificence it had displayed before. That couldn't be! It simply couldn't. Nothing could be there one moment and be nonexistent the next! The only exception was that odd feline, Chessur, whose structure could never truly be explained. Alice sighed deeply as her eyes strained to see what she already knew to be gone. She thought for a split second she might have seen something move into the shadows, but realized that there was absolutely nothing there. "I was just pondering the origin of the--whatever are you looking at?" The voice pervaded her thoughts once more, and she turned her head to see the Hatter craning his neck to try and see what she did.

"Oh, forgive me." Alice replied automatically. "I was just attempting to find the little girl and her cat. They were standing"--she pointed strait down at the exact place in front of the fountain--"right there."

The Hatter shifted back and forth between the young woman and the fountain, a most puzzled expression upon his face, faintly disturbed in addition to his perplexity. Then, a good-humored smile graced him, and his eyes laughed at her. "There's no one down there, silly!" He involuntarily giggled after saying it in an innocent, lighthearted tone. "If I, a man who is an accredited nut cannot see what is unseen, there is no way that this little girl can be seen, you see...?"

Alice struggled to put two and two together in her head, but couldn't make sense of what he meant by that. "That makes no logical sense." She folded her arms, turning so that she was sitting with her back to the barrier. Her friend stayed on his feet, gaze seeming to penetrate her very mind. She sometimes wondered if he could truly tell what a person was thinking just by looking at them. The usual bright green color of his irises showed an undeniable curiosity towards others, while the more serious shade of red conveyed rigor or fury. It was through these that Alice was able to determine what he was feeling, and for that reason discover why, and what she could do to help. She truly had begun to know what selflessness felt like...

The response to her proclamation was delayed well past the point where the moment of pondering had ended, and the Hatter stifled another chuckle at some undisclosed thought, then said, "You are such a commonsensical girl, Alice..." _Tsking_ her, he held out his tea cup from the saucer; she hadn't seen him take a drink since he had began talking to her. "Tea?"

Having his head tilted to the side and with his arm extended in her direction with his fingers curled around the tea cup's handle, he gave the impression of being an guiltless soul. Leaning over to examine the object, Alice quickly became aware that there wasn't even anything in the cup, and quietly declined. The Hatter shrugged melodramatically, but stole a glimpse himself, then blinked rapidly in what Alice defined as "sad consciousness". He placed the two items on the bench, then sat down next to her and slouched over, putting his chin in his hands. "Blithering imbeciles," he mumbled to himself, catching Alice's attention again, "think they can take away my tea, do they? Who do those swindling, double-crossing, thieving, prevaricating sons of perverse and rebellious women think they are?" His mumbling grew faster with every intentionally insulting word he poured out, along with very faint traces of an accent. This man _was_ exceedingly peculiar. Most peculiar indeed...

An awkward silence elapsed while Alice struggled to come up with a light topic of conversation that he would take interest in, which was hard to say, bearing in mind that madness clouded his reason more times than not. But then again, he was quite intelligent, for being a slave of insanity, not to mention being susceptible to normal human emotions. Out of the corner of her eye, she watched him stare impassively into the hall of carousers, shifting ever so often like he could not sit still. This, logically, was unreservedly accurate, given that spastic movements were a common occurrence within the madman's--Alice used to term without the intent of offense--little trio. About to say something; anything that sounded good in her mind, her gaze was drawn to a movement in front of her. In the doorway, stood the White Queen, adorned in a dress more pure and elegant then Alice had ever seen before. She dipped her head reverentially when the queen looked at her, a lovely smile forming on her dark lips. Alice studied the other woman with a mixture of respect and the smallest fragment of jealousy. There was no denying it, Wonderland's correct ruler was stunning. She neared the two bemused sitters, her arms raised and fingers curled flawlessly.

"Is there something you wanted, my Queen?" The Hatter solicited deferentially, sweeping his hat off the top of his head in one fluid motion and holding it in his lap. He grew all the more fidgety as he spoke. "Is there a problem? Did one of my friends break something again? I told Thackery to be careful, I truly did! Or perhaps, do your guests require entertainment?"

The queen laughed calmly, her silky white hair swinging around her shoulders. She gestured for him to stop speaking in a polite manner. "No, no. Everything is just perfect, but thank you for your offer. Actually, I came not for you, but to ask something of Alice."

"Anything." Alice answered, brightening automatically. "What may I do for you?"

"Simply answer me this: why are you not enjoying the party?" Pausing, her scintillating eyes moved to the Hatter as well. "Both of you." She added with placid conviction. "Surely, Alice, you desire the admiration of the people, do you not?"

Caught between a reply that would displease the White Queen, and a useless attempt at lying, Alice weighed her two options. Being scrutinized by the two other individuals put extra pressure on her; she had no idea what to say. "I don't fancy myself a social person, if you do not mind my saying so. From the time I was very small, the notion of..._mingling_, never fully appealed to me. My parents forced me to, and if it is all good and well, I wonder if I might remain out here, even if for a mere moment longer?"

Studying Alice, the queen nodded slowly, coming to an understanding, so it seemed. "As you wish. I suspect you will be wanting to stay with her, Tarrant?"

The Hatter was of the same mind, making known his concurrence with a dynamic, "Yes, my Queen." But then he said in a sentimental tone of voice. "Always." He broke off and resituated his hat overtop the trim shock of orange that was his hair, instantly appearing more self-confident. What his hat was to him was no doubt the equivalent of being properly dressed to most in London.

Flattered by the remark, yet knowing full well the sincerity behind the words, Alice had to turn her head away to hide the faint color that had risen to her face. Folding her hands by habit, she regained composure just in time to see the queen taking her leave. Her company observed her with an ingenuous form of prying, making her feel uncomfortably ill at ease. While he was a close friend, it would be extremely thick of her to acknowledge what he had just stated. Though mild in comparison to many other things that Alice could conjure up, she had always responded to all comments with the utmost aptness for a young woman of her age, regardless of how outrageous she, herself was. If ever the circumstances were to change, perhaps...

She ended the thought before it was even concluded. The Mad Hatter would always be a protector and comrade. To deem him anything else would be suicidal.

_But you know that the likeness suited for you is unreachable back home..._A voice in the back of her head pointed out, leaving her mentally struggling to bring uniformity back to her views. _I think I need some sleep...It has been too long of a day to be contemplating such deep topics..._

On that note, Alice cleared her throat nonchalantly, standing up as she carried out the action. She was given a look that killed her emotionally--one full of esteem and that ubiquitous integrity. "I believe..." she began, "that I shall retire for the night. I feel suddenly weary." Alice could scarcely look him in the eyes. _Good Lord...It cannot be all that bad..._ Forcing a smile, she walked towards the doorway, but paused when the Hatter spoke.

"Alice." There was a long hiatus, filled only by the subdued clamor of the revelers and music. She turned to bravely peer over her shoulder at him, noticing that he had not moved.

"Yes?"

They stared at each other, until he addressed her again, with a greater earnestness then Alice had ever perceived before.

"Thank you..." The man called Tarrant Hightopp told her. "For everything you have done for us."

She left without a further response, just as a vast smile materialized on the Hatter's face once more.

Alice was escorted to her room by a servant, predictably dressed all in white. When the door was opened for her, she knew she had reached heaven. Everything was spotless and untainted, much like the rest of the lot in the castle. Against the wall to the left, a large, king-sized white bed took up not even a third of the accommodation's spaciousness. The floor was carpeted in a soft plushy material, and there were many furnishings scattered around as well. On the opposite wall as the bed, there was another doorway, connecting the room with what seemed to be a closet of some sort. The only thing that bothered Alice, was that not a single thing was a color other than white...until she took a closer look around. In the darkness, she could not see everything perfectly, but when the servant lit a lamp mounted on the wall beside the door, something caught her eye. She waited, and when the servant had left her to herself, she took a closer look.

A nightdress lay flat against the white comforter. It had thin straps and lace around the neck, with tiny ribbons at the places where the straps came down. But what was most startling about it, was that it was as black as night. Not a trace of white could be found on it, nor any other color for that matter. It greatly contrasted everything else, making it stand out like a weed among roses. Alice's curiosity was piqued, and as she picked it up carefully, her fingers felt that it was made of a smooth silk unlike anything she had ever experienced before. Holding it up to herself, she found, with great satisfaction that it would fit her perfectly, and straight away went to the small room on the adjecent wall to try it on. She changed quickly, for a cold feeling had come over the entire bedroom as soon as she had touched the apparel. What should have been an inkling to doubt was traded for fascination. Alice had never seen a dress like it before in all her life. She had to question whether this was what they would wear back home in the future. Well, future or not, it was a very nice piece of clothing, although she had no idea as to where it might have come from. Removing her shoes and stockings, she walked barefoot out of the closet with her other dress draped over her arm, and went to a small table where there sat a pitcher of clear water. Pouring it into a crystal glass, she turned around and leaned against the white-wooded surface.

What she saw made her drop the glass onto the carpet, spilling nearly all of the water that had previously been in it. She couldn't move; her whole body went stiff.

In the chair near the far window, there sat a man. He had short black hair, neatly done. His face was clear, save for one small detail: a half-sun shaped mark under his left eye. Additional visual probing showed that both his eyes were outlined in a thin, black line. He had a clean profile, but wore a frightening red suit jacket that fell to his knees, over a black shirt and vest. Black pants went with his shirt, and dark socks with sprays of white in them went down into trim, black shoes. But most of all, the aspect of this stranger that struck a cord in Alice, was his red tophat, encircled by a length of black material. He looked like the Mad Hatter, but rather, was a more shadowy form of her friend. Alice set her hands down on the edges of the table, watching him closely in case he attacked. But somehow, he didn't have baleful intention; she knew, somehow, in some strange way. All he did was lean forward, his hand grasping the handle of a cane.

And with his head canted to the side, he said in the spine-chilling voice of a serpent, "Hello, Alice Kingsley...My name is Barabbas Thayer, and I have been waiting for you..."

**Just in case you're wondering or if you noticed it, I based this new guy's look off of the singer from the European band Oomph!, specifically from the music video to their awesome song Labyrinth, which is what I like to refer to as, "Alice in Wonderland gone emo". **

**REVIEW AND I'LL TRY MY BEST TO UPDATE QUICKLY! **


	3. Chapter 2

**Usual disclaimer stuff, with the exception of the small line at the very end. I'm hoping the next update will be around May 7th or 8th. If not then: the next weekend; just so you know. **

**THANKS FOR THE REVIEWS!! KEEP 'EM COMIN'!!**

**Chapter 2**

Alice dared not take her eyes off the stranger for fear of what might happen. He stood, supporting himself with the cane as he approached her. His legs seemed unsure of how to walk--even being so young looking as he was, which appeared to be somewhere in the thirties--but there was nothing _that_ unusual about it. People had disabilities! But...in Wonderland? Strange though it may have seemed, it was the most logical explanation, and Alice was a logical girl. He had said his name to be Barabbas--a name that was not completely normal, yet existent, much like the man himself. _But what an odd name it is..._Alice couldn't help but thinking.

"You must forgive me." He said, continuing to have difficulties walking. "I am not accustomed to such an action."

"What happened to you?"

Thayer stopped. His hat lay crooked on his head. "It is...a long story that I shall not bore you with."

Uncomfortable with the way he spoke, Alice moved to the door. "I had better be going then. I had no idea that this was your room, and I would hate to disturb you, sir." It had sounded better in her head, because even a fool could see that it was intended as her housing.

"Oh no, no! This _is_ your room, I can tell you that much."

"That is quite all right Mr. Thayer." She reached to open the door. "I will not impose on a guest the task of finding another place to spend the night."

"I am not a guest here, Alice."

She stopped dead. Not a visitor? Who then, was he? She turned back to see that he had moved closer to her, unnervingly so. With a small gasp, she backed up as far as she could, her back touching the door. Thayer looked intently at her, and for the first time, she saw that his eyes were not normal. Instead of those of a human, they were a pale shade of green--not the friendly color of the Hatter's, but a different, more ominous one--with pupils that were diamond shaped. The mark under his left eyes shone more vividly. "Who are you?" Alice was barely able to choke out. He smiled forebodingly, revealing a mouth full of pointed, ivory-white teeth. Fumbling for the doorknob behind her, her efforts were put to an end when he took both of her wrists in a vice grip, but harbored an almost playful expression on his face as he did it. Dragging her around away from the door, he released her and leaned on his cane, which he had been able to keep by his side even when fighting her attempts to break free. Alice watched him heave a sigh of obvious aggravation, tapping his foot idly on the floor.

"As I was saying..." Thayer pronounced, as if to begin a lengthy tale.

"What do you want?" She snapped back, not giving him time to go on. "Did the Red Queen send you? You are certainly dressed like one of her own!"

He rolled his eyes. "Certainly not. I have no dealings with that woman, Alice. I come from somewhere different, and I can assure you that my intentions are far more honorable than she."

"Why did you force me to stay then?"

"Alice, Alice, _Alice_...I only did what was necessary in order to gain your ear. Don't you like the dress I gave you?" At that juncture, Alice's agitation soared to unimaginable levels. "Yes, I see you understand. I am not an enemy to you. All I ask is that you listen to what I have to tell you...about your alleged friends." She said nothing, which prompted him on. "You were never aware, but I have been watching you a great deal since your return to Underland. You have much kindness, something that would create...shall we say, _trials_, in the corrupted world above. But here--here it is valued...and taken advantage of as well."

What could he mean? People were certainly not taking advantage of her were they? Of course they weren't. She was just questioning herself too much. Such a long day had done it to her mind. For all she knew, she was hallucinating. Closing her eyes, she endeavored to block out everything around her and concentrate on a happy memory in her mind, but none would come. The miserable reality had set in again, and she genuinely began to think that she was cursed. Barabbas Thayer was a creature from the land of the wicked. He couldn't be the only one; there had to be more like him. Alice shivered at the thought of a group of eerie-eyed, razor-toothed, red and black clad people, all with the same eccentric voices and purpose...whatever his purpose was. She longed for someone to talk to--one of her friends that would understand and believe her. Making up her mind to go search for the Mad Hatter the first time she had a chance to get away, she had a terrible idea. What if Wonderland was tearing apart at the seams...?

Alice needed sleep; she ached for it like nothing else.

Had no one gone through more than she?

The man before her ogled her with a look that expressed his thoughts better than any word, and he opened his mouth a long moment before speaking again. "Do I frighten you?" He drawled, a small smirk tugging at the corner of his lips. Alice was unmoving. Her arms hung limply at her sides and her continence put across her disinclination to reply. She was determined not to elicit anything else from him. "Yes..." He had grown quieter, lingering on the word. He reached out to touch her pale face with his long fingers, skeletal to the extent that Alice could see every vein in his hand. His skin was cold, just as she expected it to be, and he had chillingly sharp nails. Flinching, she took a few considerable steps backwards. "And so the question is answered..."

Thayer matched her, bringing him back as closer then he was before. "Tell me, what do you think I am? I am just _dying_ to know." Drama laced the last part of his request.

"You are the devil." Alice countered, unyielding to the provocative nature that radiated from his every utterance. His scent was atypical, somewhat of a mixture of cloves and smoke. Tension strangled the young woman. "You do not belong in Wonderland. You do not belong _here_."

"Don't I?" He raised an eyebrow. "If I am the devil, why do you persist in talking to me?"

Alice was finished with this game. "Get out!" She ordered, snarling. "I will kill you if you stay!"

With a short chuckle, Thayer maneuvered around her, looking at her sickly. "You have nothing to fear from me, dear Alice. To destroy such an angel would be a sin worthy of the most horrid death a mortal's mind could conjure, I can promise you that. Moreover," he came to a stop when he reached the window, "you could not kill me even if you wanted to."

Flicking open locks in one fluid motion, he raised his hand to the brim of his hat in formal valediction. "Fare thee well, Alice Kingsley...Heed your visions before it is too late."

The flame in the lamp blew out, immersing the whole room in the darkness of night. Alice slowly made her way to where the table was, feeling around for a match. Striking one assiduously, her eyes adjusted to the light painfully, and she went without delay to the opened window. There was nothing but flat, white stone walls for a good hundred feet down, with only a few overhangs jutting out here and there, but few and far between. He could never have made it down, even _without_ his leg quandaries. On the ground, there was no sign of him, nor in the distance. Pulling back, Alice happened to take a quick look at the floor near her feet, and saw...

Tentatively, she picked up Thayer's cane, a feeling of terror running down her spine, and suddenly overcome by a severe lightheadedness subsided into blackness.

In abnormally high spirits, Tarrant Hightopp hummed a happy tune to himself while waltzing down the white hallways. His impending destination was his place of work, which also happened to be his living quarters. For no apparent intention, he was beaming like a sunflower, a spring in his step. He passed by the kitchen, greeted by the predictable shattering sounds and incomprehensible phrases from the March Hare, who had left the party soon after arriving. Rumor had it that he hadn't been _allowed_ to stay, for fear that he would go into one of his spastic moods and frighten people away. Inquisitive as to what hour it was, he wondered where that time-keeping rabbit was when his services were needed the most. Often, the little, white mammal was outright annoying, but on the rare instances when Tarrant actually _wanted_ to know the time...Ah well--it wasn't like his life depended on it, or did it perhaps? _A thought for another time_...He guessed, running a scarred hand wistfully along the wall as he went on his way. The flat stone felt smooth under his fingertips, and for reasons unknown, he supposed that a human cranium--lacking skin; the perception of anything else made him mentally cringe--would feel similar, and tittered in a way only comparable to a small bird.

_How fascinating a theory though...I must know some day..._

These were the everyday musings of a verified lunatic. He couldn't have asked for more.

Once in a while, someone would come along, and he would smile politely at them...or at least what he believed to be politely. The only dilemma was, that, unbeknownst to him, his and the well-to-do folks definitions of the word 'polite' were diametrically opposed. The explanation was simple, for when Tarrant grinned at a passerby, his whole face warped with it. His eyes widened, changing frequently, and the distinct contours of his cheekbones became even more pronounced. This, in combination with his already outlandish looks would perturb anyone who had not seen him before. It was something he never expected to get. Such deep acuity required more brain cells then he was willing to put forth. In most cases, he was actually a very insightful thinker, dwelling for hours at a time on a lone matter. This was back when his life had no meaning; back when all he had to do with his time was sit at the head of the tea table watching his senseless companions' sanity decompose before his eyes. He was..._out there_, to put it in a nice way since he wasn't one to insult himself, and the way he knew that the condition was genuine was the fact that he could identify it on his own. He didn't need people telling him that he was mad. His title well implied it already!

Out of nowhere, he tripped over something, who he soon discovered to be a 'someone'. Tarrant landed with a startled, sharp cry, nearly face down on the floor. Laughing from incentives unidentified even to him, he turned over onto his side to find himself face to face with the white rabbit. The creature, Nivens was his name, was crouched low to the ground, sniffing the Hatter's face, and then backing up once he saw that the man was alert. Half-embarrassed, Tarrant chortled for a second time through his teeth and greeted the dazed rabbit.

"Oh! Hello there! I was actually just wondering where you were seeing as my thoughts seem to tangle together so very rapidly and I need to know what time it is because that all verifies where I should be right now or later...or perhaps even tomorrow..." Nivens rose up onto his hind legs and studied his friend incredulously, while the speaker cracked a grin so large that the animal feared his face would permanently stay that way. When Tarrant saw the reaction he got, he jumped to his feet quickly, gesturing widely with his arms as he prolonged his explanation. "Am I rambling? Sorry, I'm sure that you have a lot to accomplish before the night is over. Simply tell me what hour it is and I shall hasten on my way."

Nivens withdrew his pocket watch, and opened his mouth to speak, but was interrupted before he got a word in edgewise.

"Never mind, I will be quite satisfactory without knowing. Why should it be any of my business what time of night it is? I have no where to be anyhow." He began to walk away, and threw over his shoulder. "Lovely talking with you."

The rabbit watched him go, wide-eyed and confused, before shrugging. He would never come to terms with someone that mad.

Tarrant went on until he arrived at his room, and entered without so much as a second thought. Everything was white, a color so boring that he swore that it shouldn't even have been a color! There was but one exception, in the form of his work desk, which was covered in all kinds of multihued fabrics and ribbon. He sighed contentedly; he was truly at home. Walking swiftly over to the desk, he pulled out the chair, sitting down. Leaning his head on one hand, he deliberated whether to submerge himself into a project, or to call it a night and have a crack at sleep. Then it hit him...Somewhere from the back of his mind, he came up with a little rhyme. It was out of the blue, there had been nothing to inspire it, unless...

"If not for the words of a troubled soul..." He mumbled the first sentence, searching for a quill. In a haphazard feat, he cleared the whole desk off with a swipe of his arms in both directions, sorting through the remaining scraps of cloth until he found a decent writing implement. From an organized drawer, he picked out a piece of soft green colored paper devoid of any preference. Grabbing a small bottle of ink, he dipped the end of the quill into it, leaning over the paper intently. His small line soon turned into two, than, finally an eight line string of senseless, yet outlandishly poetic cogitations.

From that rhyme came another, then another, until he had filled the top of his desk with at least a dozen papers covered with his ludicrous drabble.

He drew out the hours until dawn.


	4. Chapter 3

**No one except my OC(s?) in this story belongs to me--as if you didn't know that.......or did you? The same goes for everything personality wise, name wise, and pretty much everything else except the little two-verse poem thing you'll see later. I basically wrote this while watching Dancing With The Stars, running back and forth during commercials...yes, really. I care about you guys! Kay? Enjoy, review, and I'll try and update ASAP!**

**Chapter 3**

Alice awoke from a nightmare beset unconsciousness with an ill-omened sensation about her. Yes, she was still on the floor of her room, but it felt as though she had just been elsewhere--not only in a dreamscape, but somewhere more _real_. It was hard to describe, but she knew that what she had experienced in her fear-induced sleep had been underwent in order to tell her something. Trying relentlessly to recall what she had seen, the departing words of Thayer echoed back through her head. _"Heed your visions before it is too late..."_

At the thought of him, she curled her fingers around the cane she had found...but it wasn't there. _What?_ Where could it have gone...?

She pushed herself to her feet and paced the whole room with one hand placed on her brow. Goodness, she had a terrible headache! Torn between what she _should_ do and what she _wanted_ to do, Alice mulled over her two options in weighty silence. On one hand, she should go see someone of the medical persuasion about her head, fearing a concussion. And on the other hand, she had a strong conviction to go pay the Mad Hatter a visit, for she felt rather guilty about leaving him all by himself the night before, and believed that an apology was in order. The poor man probably thought that she was some coldhearted thing now for simply walking away, and Alice wasn't about to leave it at that. Plus, she _had_ to talk to someone about what had happened, and he was the one she felt most comfortable talking to. That essentially made the decision for her, and she went off to locate her friend without further thought to her appearance, or even the fact that she ran barefoot along the cool stone hallways. Finding a servant along the way, she asked where she could find the Hatter, and got a most peculiar answer...

"I do not believe he is expecting company this morning, Milady. Nor do I recommend such of you." The man bristled, looking at her black attire like it was of the devil. "Perhaps, if I may suggest, you should go make yourself _decent_ before, ah, dropping by, don't you think?"

Alice raised an eyebrow. That simple action caused her head to throb with pain. "My business is of the utmost imperativeness concerning a stranger I found in my room last night. I need to know if the Hatter is acquainted with him--a question that cannot wait. Now, if you would please tell me in what room my comrade stays."

The servant, still hesitant, heaved a sigh and said, "On the highest level in the North wing. His is the last door at the end of the hall. You can't miss it; its above the kitchen." He ended with a miniscule shudder before sharply walking past her without a single additional statement.

Alice, questioning why wearing a black nightdress in a white castle had all the sudden become such a sin, walked swiftly on her way, her footsteps pattering along with her. Through highly decorated corridors she went, taking the necessary time to admire the rich tapestries and portraits that brought color to the otherwise featureless walls. One in particular depicted two regal looking people, a man and a woman, whom Alice assumed to be the Queen's parents. Her guesses were verified when she spotted the bright-eyed, white-haired girl peeking out from around her mother, clearly the current ruler of the castle. Where her sister was, Alice couldn't be sure, but she definitely wasn't in the picture then. As she moved on, the framed works of art continued, but not one showed she who had been the Red Queen. The favoritism to the youngest royal daughter was unambiguous, showing her in all stages of life from childhood to her present age. With all her pondering, before Alice knew it, she was at the door of her friend. Standing there a moment, she wondered what she should do.

_Should I knock...?_ Alice wondered, fairly skeptical about it. _I suppose it would be rude to just walk in..._

Rude or not, Alice wasn't concerned, and entered without a second thought. She was met by darkness, but when her eyes adjusted, she saw him. He was seated at a desk, his head resting on one arm, out like a light. His hat had fallen off his head onto the floor, and his mouth hung open, an involuntary product of sleep, Alice was sure. Repressing an audible laugh, she tiptoed over before him, and picked up the hat from the floor, examining it briefly before placing it next to him. It was only then, that she noticed the numerous papers scattered all over the top of the desk, in a wide variety of colors. There was writing on each one of them, but without proper light, Alice could never know what the Hatter had been working on before he lost consciousness to the world. When a thin outline of light from the thick--surprisingly dark colored--curtains caught her attention, she hastened to them and felt for the spot where the fabric overlapped. Finding it at last, she ripped the drapes apart, releasing a sea of brightness into the room. Spurts of pain traveled her head from side to side, and with her eyes squinted, she struggled to focus again.

What Alice didn't know, was that the moment she opened the curtains, the Hatter jerked awake, startled greatly at the prospect of something happening without his attention. Not making a sound, he looked this way and that, without any movement. Cautiously, narrowing his eyes, his one hand reached out to take hold of his hat, raising the object to its rightful place. Hearing a small noise from behind him, he twisted ever so slightly. Much to his great disclosure, he saw _her_ standing in front of his window, hunched over with her hands over her eyes. While he watched her, she straitened and slowly allowed herself to grow used to the intensity of the morning light pouring into the white room, before he could not restrain himself any longer.

"Alice!" He greeted cheerfully, if a but guardedly. "What--"

She had spun around to face him by this point, opening her eyes wide to get accustomed to the vividness all at once. "Do not ask why I am here, because I assure you that your assumptions go beyond what I consider to be reasonable thinking!" Alice said in a hurry.

The Hatter blinked. "Okay? I was just going to ask what time it is, because depending on the time I have various places to be and people to meet...and its probably nearly time for breakfast!" He stared off into space, after that jerking his head down to behold her again. "So why _are_ you here?"

"Well, you see"--sitting distractedly down into a chair, Alice took a second to formulate an explanation--"last night...I felt like I left you out there abruptly. I should have realized that you were as lonely as I was, and I just wanted to apologize for--"

It was his turn to cut her short. "There's no need to go groveling, Alice." He said in a warm, forthcoming tone of voice. "You don't need to apologize to me about anything. I know why you did what you did, and...well, if anyone owes anyone words of repentance, it is I to you." When he spoke, he sounded almost..._normal_? Or was it just a guise he was producing out of his own lunacy? Alice had no idea, but she had no time to waste mulling over such things when there were more important and potentially life changing subjects at hand.

"Well, you have my gratitude, but I'm afraid there is a more worrying concern that I believe you will know something about."

The Hatter waited, and when Alice wavered, he wasted no time calling her on it. "Well, Alice dear, I cannot very well solve your quandaries if you do not directly tell me what it is that bothers you so...I'm not good at roundabout communication, you know." He leaned on one hand nonchalantly while the young woman finally found the words.

"When I...left, last night, I went up to my room, and I discovered something that disturbed me..." She stopped deliberating on how to go on, until the Hatter voiced a question.

"It wasn't that butler roaming the halls was it? Charles I think his name is...because I do swear that man is--"

Alice held up a hand, silencing him. "As I was saying, I found the dress I am wearing now sitting on my bed, which would not have seemed unusual, if not for the color." Noticing that his gaze had moved to the black nightdress she wore, she tried not to heed it. "After I had tried it on, I walked out of the closet to find an odd man sitting in the chair by my window." He fidgeted, his eyes in tiny slits at the mention of such a situation. "He introduced himself as Barabbas Thayer, and I was wondering...if possibly...you have heard of or met him before?"

Looking to the ceiling broodingly, he sat up strait again and drummed his scarred fingers over the top of his desk, humming something quietly that sounded very familiar to Alice. Normally, she would have reminded him that it was no trivial affair, but he was..._him_, and being him cancelled out any censure that could potentially be directed at him. It was after a few moments that something began to happen to him. He stiffened, and his green eyes grew wide. Stopping his humming, he leaned forward, staring piercingly at Alice. She felt like he was penetrating her very soul by how serious he appeared. "Pray tell, did the man wear a black top hat?" Alice nodded quickly, going to say something, but not before he persisted with his questions. "And...did he walk with a limp? Kind of awkward-like?"

"Yes! Yes! Do you know him?" Alice went up to the Hatter and knelt down in front of him, intently awaiting the positive answer she sought. Her small hands balled into fists at her sides.

He didn't look back at her. His face had gone hauntingly blank. "I've..._crossed paths _with him before." A small, yet grim grin accompanied his assertion. "I really wish I had never met that man. He's too dark, and his voice practically spells out the word death and he...and he dresses like me." On impulse, the Hatter looked down at Alice nervously, "Why was he in your room and what did he want?"

"Calm down. He only delivered a message...he just took a bit longer getting to that point than I was comfortable with."

The Hatter frowned, a flicker of sadness coming to life. "I...I'm only concerned for you..." He stood, and Alice did the same right after. "If something..._happened_ to you here, I do not know what the results would be in the world above, which is the source of my anxiety, so it seems." His voice was so small and compassionate, and his expression so filled with woe, that Alice could not refuse him an embrace in the end. "I don't even know if what I suffer from is lucid anymore, Alice..." He spoke this when her arms had encircled him, with a fair amount of misery, despite Alice's act of sympathy. "I try to find solace but again and again the same mental sickness pulls me into its clutches and I can never escape."

"Wonderland would not be the same if you were not the way you are...I have told you that many times before." Alice said, still hugging him for moral support. He sighed, and entered a silence comparable to the dead. "I'll be okay..." She told him, pulling back. "Barabbas Thayer is gone now." Her mind instantly went to the cane that had disappeared, and she had to wonder if that was really true.

"I can only hope." The Hatter gathered up all the papers on his desk into a pile and walked slowly to the door. He was far from his typical happy emotional state, which worried Alice. "I'm going to...go get some breakfast. Will you be joining me?"

"Yes I--" Alice stopped when she saw a paper fall from his arms and float to the floor. It was a nice green color, and had two small paragraphs on it, from what she could tell. Picking it up, much to the dismay of the Hatter, Alice's eyes skimmed the page, and she was overcome with respect for the man. He, on the other hand, wanted her to give it back to him without reading it.

"No! Don't read that! Not good!" A glimpse of his natural self was shown, and he reached out to her in an endeavor to retrieve his work to no avail, for Alice moved out of his way, causing him to drop all of the other papers to the floor. Mumbling, he dived after them, waving her away when she tried to help him. "Stay back! It's nothing you need to read!"

Alice wondered why he said that. "Why not? I think it's beautiful."

The Hatter drew an armful of pages to himself, the other hand stretched out to attain the last of them, and virtually peeped, "Really?"

"Yes! Of course! I never knew you had an interest in writing, listen to this...

If not for the words of a troubled soul,

When darkness doth give way to light,

The driving madness has taken a toll,

And immersed the sun in eternal night."

Alice was in awe of his abilities. She had no idea that he was capable of such deep views that went beyond even her imagination. Then she continued, and was surprised at what she found.

"As fire, doused by the storms will die,

The smoke will rise before the rain,

With sanity shattered the soul did cry,

One note 'tis a cure for one insane."

With his work--probably all as equally talented--collected, the Hatter was able to extend a hand and pluck the paper from Alice, although his cheerfulness was somewhat renewed by her pleasant appraisal. "Well, uh, I sometimes find myself in need of a proverbial outlet, to borrow the colloquialism." He ended with a quiet giggle, making the otherwise gloomy atmosphere all the more likable.

"May I ask what it means?" Alice inquired with much curiosity.

The Hatter was at the door again, and with his pages of work all neatly tucked under his arm, he said, "Someday, Alice, I shall tell you everything. Someday..."

000

Over breakfast, the Hatter wasn't nearly as talkative as he regularly was, and everyone noticed it. He had still failed to tell Alice who exactly Thayer was, but she didn't press the issue, realizing how much it bothered him. She hoped, that with time, he would explain everything to her, including the eccentric thoughts he put to paper. The likelihood of that happening any time soon was highly improbable, unfortunately, and she exhaled loudly at the long, room-length table, catching the attention of everyone present.

"Is something bothering you, Alice?" The White Queen asked from her position at the opposite end of the table. "You seem...detached."

"That would be a blunder on my part, my Queen." The Hatter elucidated, seated in the middle on the left. He poked at the plate of fruit in front of him expressively, slumping over a little. "My momentary emotional lurch seems to have had an affect on her, from what I gather." He peered down into the crystal glass in front of him, filled with a red juice. "I don't like the looks of this..." Quiet came over him after the mumbled comment.

"It's cranberry juice, Tarrant." The Queen enlightened offhandedly, then looking back to Alice. "Is what he claims true?"

Alice shook her head hastily. "No. He has nothing to do with it. I'm just...stressed."

"Well that's rather adverse. Perhaps you should find something to make you feel better. Underland will turn inside out if your dissatisfied, you know."

Alice just shrugged.

"If it is all right," the Hatter ventured, "I have an idea that may very well cure Alice's gloomy frame of mind, as well as mine."

"Do tell." The White Queen requested with a peace bringing smile.

He straitened in his chair. "I intended on keeping my idea undisclosed, if you approve of that." Gaining approval of the Queen, he picked up the glass of cranberry juice, sniffed it a few times, and set it back down on the table with a strange look about his face.

000

"When you said that it would make me feel better, I had no idea you were referring to this." Alice said, holding onto the hilt of her sword without interest. "Swordplay is not my definition of a joyful pursuit, Hatter."

Tarrant chuckled, his wide grin mocking her. "What? Are you afraid of sparring in a dress?" His chuckle grew to a crazy hoot. Alice glowered at him, and he stopped, growing abruptly serious. "Oh, come on, if you just do what you did before, everything will turn out the way you want it to. You know that, uh, talking to yourself thing you did when you were fighting the--"

"That was then, this is now!" She gestured around with her hand, and Tarrant knew that she wouldn't have done that when she had first come. _My how she's changed_...He thought. "Besides, I don't feel like it would do me any good engaging in violence."

"Sure it would, Alice!" Tarrant searched for reasons, forming a mental list. "Let's see there's the event that evil forces attack the castle, and then there's...well, there are a whole lot of things that could happen, and having another person to help when that time comes would really benefit us, and of course you...because you have less of a chance of dying then. An added bonus for you!"

Accepting this better than Tarrant thought she would, Alice said, "Fine," and lifted her sword up, moving her feet into a fighting stance. "But if you lose it and go for my head, I have full rights to back out of this."

"But of course."

With a whoop of absolute amusement, he slashed out at her. Instinctively, she blocked, and the clang of metal on metal resounded through the verdant field, located behind the castle. Alice maneuvered around him as best she could, but her dress kept winding around her legs, preventing her from being as agile as she would normally be. Despite this, Tarrant found himself contested, even if his skills weren't as honed as most. With the combination of his sporadic actions in defense, and her quickness with avoiding blows, the practice fight went quite smoothly, and as Tarrant predicted, Alice soon became more happy with herself as she succeeded. She smiled every time she made a move that pushed him to the edge, which made him do so as well. His eye color changed often, back and forth from a triumphant purple color when he was prevailing, to a dull gray of frustration when his brain told him to do something wrong.

Around the whole field they went, the sounds of swords clashing creating a steady cadence in amalgamation with the wind and birds. Once, Alice stumbled, rolling down a small hill. Tarrant didn't bring to a halt his attack, however, and as he expected, neither did she. She sprung to her feet just in time to meet his blade with her own over again, a smirk unlike any he had ever seen forming on her mouth. She even clipped his hair on one occasion, slicing a fragment off the side. Tarrant howled with laughter as the sparring went on, yelling things that he didn't understand, but felt compelled to say. Sometimes his voice would be regular, and others it would take on the wild Scottish accent that made him seem to everyone else like a total aberration. Alice, on the other hand, hardly ever spoke, only congratulating him once in a long while after he preformed a particularly good effort. The high he got from undertaking such casual, yet exciting combat surpassed even the influence making hats and drinking tea had on him.

When, at last, the fight stopped near a thick grove of trees and undergrowth, they both acknowledged each others accomplishments. Although Tarrant still wasn't as talented as he would have liked to be, he accepted the subtle praise from Alice without question. She was tired, he heard it in her voice, and her dress, a very nice white one with yellow mixed in with it, was ripped in several places. Tarrant wasn't different appearance wise, except for the missing lock of hair near his right ear. He knew he probably looked lopsided, and snickered.

"What are you laughing at?" Alice inquired, leaning on her sword.

"Oh nothing." He replied in a high-pitched, mysterious voice.

They started to walk back towards the castle.

"You were right," she said, keeping her eyes centered on the ground as she walked, "I guess I should trust you more."

Tarrant looked to the skyline. "You did. I know you did. Admitting your standpoints on what others think is hard. I'm pretty sure that you were overjoyed as it was that I offered to chase away those negative feelings." He rambled on, taking up what would have been an awkward silence with senseless, yet at the same time meaningful words.

Alice glanced at him. "I suppose your..." She trailed off mid-sentence, drawing a strangled breath. This caught Tarrant's attention, especially when she stopped dead in her tracks and stared at him with a spine-chilling gaze.

It scared him to death.

000

Alice couldn't focus. Something was prohibiting her rightful way of seeing things. The background behind the Hatter had blurred, and taken on a dark, forbidding air. Ghostly entities filled her vision, but what disturbed her the most was her friend's face. It was not him, but a skull with eyeless apertures. Blood ran from them, down the white surface over the mouth, covering two rows of rotted fangs. Suddenly, the face morphed into something else--_someone_ else.

It was Barabbas Thayer.

Alice lost consciousness faster than the last time, with the sneering expression haunting her mind as her world faded once more into a hollow darkness. The last thing she felt were the arms catching her as she fell.

000

What the Hatter didn't know as he called out her name in desperation was that they were being watched. From the shadows in the grove of trees stood a four-legged, mangled, emaciated form. It crouched low in the foliage, claws digging into the dirt with anticipation. A snarl rippled across its long jaws, and after its red eyes had focused on the two people for one last time, it turned and took off, heading back to its master.

000

**Sooooo? What'd ya think? Was it ominous enough? Review and tell me, okay? I'll try and get the next chapter up as soon as I can, but seeing as school is coming to an end, preparation for finals may keep me away from writing for a bit longer than I'd like. I'll be awaiting your comments and suggestions! **


	5. Chapter 4

**Hey all! Thank you for all the wonderful reviews! I'm happy people find this interesting! Do continue motivating me if you please. Onwards we go...as a grim reality sets in for our female protagonist...What is to come? Only time will tell dear readers.**

**Chapter 4**

Running. Running. Merciless running.

The creature's clawed feet pounded across the barren plains, littered with the bones of its victims, long passed. Skeletal trees sprang up from the ground from time to time, often the perch of a hungry vulture. Water collected in murky pools, acidic and deadly. No life drank it, unless of course they were fond of being eaten away from the inside out. Brown grasses swayed back and forth with minds of their own, for there was no breeze to impel their movement. The sound was as a crackling branch, ensnared by the grasp of flames. The creature breathed furiously. Saliva dangled from his mouth, running down his gaunt muzzle. His thin legs propelled him along as fast as he was able, at such a speed that his brown, scraggly hair was flattened against his body. Rocks began to appear, shadows emerging from the fog that had come swallowed the uncanny animal up. And out from behind those rocks, creatures just like the runner came to welcome one of their own home. The red eyes stood out eerily in the haze, and the returning messenger was finally bid a rest. A group of nearly identical nightmare induced creations sat or stood in a circle around him, and soon, another joined them that they all knew.

It was their leader, a gigantic, stalwart beast that practically dwarfed its subordinates. It lurked up to the courier, who had very deferentially lowered itself, and did not look at the approaching one. With ripped ears flattened, the skin around his face decaying, the leader stopped in front of the respectful thing, its gaze expectant and malicious. "Lucifer." All the animals said in unison, their heads lowered.

"What have you to report, Jalam?" The grating, husky voice came.

"I have...news...that is meant only for the master's ears." Was the reply.

The one called Jalam yelped in pain when his foot was crushed by the claws of the larger creature. Razor sharp points pierced the already brittle skin, but no blood came. Lucifer hung over his temporary victim and snarled in his face, "When you're around me. I_ am_ the master, you bloody imbecile!" A forked tongue lolled out between his jagged teeth.

Jalam whined quietly with the pitch of a dog, though his appearance was more cat-like. "I saw the girl and the crazy one near the castle. They were practicing fighting for what seemed like an eternity, until at last the opportunity was right to do as I was commanded. She is in the world of unconsciousness, just like master ordered." He sniveled.

"And _why_ didn't you deal with the other one...?" Lucifer demanded, fire raging in his eyes.

"I was under orders! I was to take care of the girl and return, nothing more!"

The leader growled, but was interrupted by another voice from the circle. "He did what he was told to! He always follows orders!"

Tearing his claws from Jalam, Lucifer swung around in the direction the speaker had sounded to come from. "Who is the one who dares to interfere!"

"Me, sir." A small female creature said ingenuously. "I know Jalam would only do what master says."

Tension hung in the air, as well as silence. It looked as though, for a moment, Lucifer would believe her, but they underestimated him if they believed that, because he shot around again, snapped his jaws shut around Jalam's neck, picked him up, and smashed the body to the ground over and over again until he was no more. Without another word, Lucifer prowled back through the circle of his inferiors. Through an archway of rock he went, disregarding the pack of animals that followed him from a distance, cowering. The arch led into a pathway bordered by towering cliffs, which slowly narrowed to a point, where there was an entrance to a cave. The resolve Lucifer had possessed him to saunter strait in, not even paying the two haggard human guards any regard. The area within the cave was dark and moisture hung in the air. Down a tunnel the large, intimidating creature continued, towards a faint light. Stalactites grew from the high ceiling in great lengths, dripping water here and there. From high above, pairs of small eyes watched the procession; small squeaks resulted. The light developed into a prominent glow as Lucifer reached the end of the passageway, crossing over into the room with the fortitude he had shown at the very beginning.

The circular space was empty, and shadows hung over the better part of it from the back. And when Lucifer voiced his presence, a silhouette appeared inside the darkness. The eyes, unseen by the rest, bored into the creature before them, as well as his cohorts, who gathered outside the opening in the wall and all whimpered slightly at the sight of the thing in the room.

"Your servant did what you willed." Lucifer began, still rough in tone, but nonetheless reverent. "Unfortunately, the one by the name of Jalam perished directly after his return journey. We have lost a great asset."

From the shadows, a sneering, slippery voice responded with a hiss, "Did this servant complete the task given to him...?"

"Yes, he did."

There was a pause. "Then, we must not delay. Come, my friend, Alice's mind awaits us..."

000

_Aaallliiiccce_...

Someone was--calling her name. That voice. It sounded all too identifiable, but she couldn't put her finger on who it might be. She shifted, her eyes refusing to open by a will of their own.

_Aaallliiiccce_..._Where are you Aaallliiiccce_..._? You mustn't sleep_..._or else the darkness will claim your soul_...

Gasping in horror, Alice shot up from where she lay, her hand going to the right side of her chest immediately_. _Her heart fluttered out of control, and her breathing was labored. Strange colors danced before her eyes. The words whispered into her ear were venomous, like a snake, and left her feeling nervous and frightened. She was positioned in the center of the room, atop a platform made of level slabs of light-grey stone. Looking at her surroundings, she almost instantly wished she hadn't. The walls were made of black rocks, and were covered in mirrors--all kinds of them, from small ones to body length ones. She was adorned in a long, flowing dress as red as blood, strapless and close-fitting around the top. Makeup covered her face in some bizarre parody of a doll, complete with bright red lipstick and rosy circles on her cheeks. She also was...older, by one way or another, in the sense that she simply looked it. Somewhere, in the back of her mind, she observed that she looked very much like an individual from the Red Queen's court. Staring at herself for another moment, trying hard to absorb the drastic change in appearance she had gone through, she endeavored to fathom the motives beyond it. When she held out her arms, she was alarmed to see that scars riddled the undersides of them nearly halfway up, leaving her once flawless skin with a mess of blemishes. She looked at her hands, and to her bewilderment two groups of strange symbols appeared on the back of each one. They were not recognizable to Alice, however she understood them as plain as day. When deciphered, they read two simple words: "behind you".

Ignoring all that was telling her not to face whatever demonized being had inflicted the marks upon her, she did it anyway, rebelliousness taking over her actions and thoughts. But she did not need to turn. One glimpse into the huge mirror directly in front of her revealed the one who spoke with such raw persuasion.

_Thayer_! She screamed in her head, as her expression and posture remained calm. So did the man, who smiled at her. To Alice's revulsion, she felt a smile materialize on her mouth as well, and it was not at all her conventionally genial one. Instead, it was replaced by one of wickedness and lure. This wasn't making any sense! How could she be scared one minute, and completely helpless in controlling herself the next?

"So good to see you awake, Alice. I thought, that perhaps you had strayed into the Realm of the Departed again." Thayer commented, watching her by way of the mirror, into which Alice looked as well. He drawled his words out in such a sickening way, that with her last shred of bodily defiance, Alice shuddered and averted her gaze from the glass.

_This isn't me_! _THIS ISN'T ME_! Trapped inside herself, the voice resisting was put to rest for good when Thayer came within a breath's distance from behind. Without the conscience-like hindrance, Alice was free to look again at the reflection. She was no longer scared of him, but rather experienced a mind-blowing respect and admiration. His presence engulfed her in malevolence, but she did not care. She belonged with him; she would follow him to the end of time. Neither of them spoke. Their reflections stood motionless. Alice's eyes drifted to the other mirrors, and what appeared within them sent shivers through her. Her hands gripped the edges of the stone platform. She was petrified by what she saw.

In each separate mirror, there was someone she had once known. There was a white rabbit...and a...and a dormouse...a pair of unnaturally stout young men, a hare, and a woman in white. But what hit her the hardest was the man's face that was in the mirror directly above the one possessing her own reflection. He seemed so sad, and Alice had no idea why. She turned to Thayer, who was also studying the pictures encircling them with an intense consciousness. When he became aware that she had turned her attention to him, he leaned down, pushed back her hair, and said against her ear, "Do you know who they are, Alice...?" It was the first time that Alice realized that he had a very faint foreign accent, increasing the disturbing effect he gave.

She nodded very slightly. "I recognize them, but I do not remember who they are...except for that man." She raised her hand and pointed with her index finger at the sad, odd-looking one near the top of the wall.

Thayer waited until she had lowered her arm to speak again. "Don't worry," he paused to place a kiss on her cheek to verify his carelessness on the matter. She leaned her head towards him, all too comfortable with the action. "Soon...they will all be dead...and you will learn to put them out of your mind..."

He backed away from her just as every single mirror in the entire room cracked and shattered onto the floor, leaving Alice surrounded by a sea of glass shards. And when she looked behind her, Thayer was gone. She was alone. Awfully, terribly alone...

The minutes ticked by.

One.

Two.

Three...

Slowly; ever so slowly things began to fade out to black, but Alice remained. As the darkness set in, she looked above her. An outline began to materialize from the void she hung unresponsively in, and she started to change. Her red dress lightened to a pure white, and the symbols on her hands disappeared. Alice dared not move, and as she neared closer to the silhouette far above her, a dull throbbing arose in her head. Everything completely went black, like she had passed out again, but it was different. She was alert. Suddenly she knew what was happening; out of the blue, she realized that it had all been a dream. Or perhaps a vision...? Never, would she willingly allow herself to be in the presence of Thayer, specifically in that type of situation. Of course it was a vision, then! But what was she being told? And a better question: who was telling her these things? She moaned, and subsequently heard an exclamation of relief from above. She tried to move, but was restrained by a steady hand on her shoulder.

"You're okay, Alice, but you must not move. You may be the victim of a great ailment."

_Who is that_? The echoing and warping her mind was processing the voice with prohibited her from finding out who it was. _Open your eyes_...Alice had to remind herself. Her lids parted painfully, and she groaned quietly again. The ceiling above was too bright, until a familiar face came into view; a familiar face with a wide, warming smile, bright green eyes, and framed by brilliantly colored hair. With her sight rather fuzzy, Alice struggled to focus. "Why does everything here have to be so bright?" She complained groggily, trying once more to sit up.

And once more, she was held back. "Please, Alice, you must rest. You've been unconscious for four days!"

Four...days?

"What?"

Taking no notice of this, the Hatter asked, "Do you happen to remember anything...from just before you blacked out?"

Alice recalled it all, yes, especially the vision, but how could she explain _that_? The pain that the mention would cause him was more then she could bear--she called to mind their previous conversation concerning the other half of the picture, and made a point not to tell him...at least not yet.

"Yes, I do, but I fear it will verify my insanity..." She said so quietly that she assumed he couldn't have heard it. But he did.

"I'm the only one in here, so whatever you say, I've probably experienced far worse in my lifetime."

Perhaps it was telltale care he spoke with that told Alice that it was okay to pour out her thoughts and concerns to him; to denote the psychosis she was frightened of for the first time in her life. It was a shameful thing to be sure, and she knew that he would be the only one who understood and empathized with her, but still a feeling of trepidation crept into her heart, and she struggled to put to words what had occurred out in the field four days ago. How was she to describe the indescribable? How was she to tell him what had happened to _him_ when her own mind had turned against her? All the while, Thayer's derisive expression would not leave her, which made a multitude of other, more deep questions come into her head. Her world was crumbling around her, and she couldn't even express her worry to the one man that would help her the most! Why did it always have to be her!

Taking a slow deep breath, she released it just as slowly. "To put it in plain words, I saw something..."

000

**Ooookay, I have no idea how I got this one finished before studying starts but I just recently learned that they aren't for another couple weeks, which gives me time to write another chapter! Be kind and review!**


	6. Chapter 5

**Thank you, thank you, thank you! You don't know how much I love hearing your feedback. I adore all of you who reviewed and favored this story! Sorry it took me awhile to update. Finals were evil, you see, and I have another story that needed some love. But, like most of you who enjoyed AiW and probably did this, I bought the movie, and have gained some random inspiration from it! Yay! Plus, as I was on the bus, staring aimlessly out the window listening to European music that I don't even understand, I saw a place that gave me the strange idea that you will see later. I'm officially done with school for the year, and have more time to write now. Now, if you please, fasten your seatbelts, put your seats into an upright position and hang on tight to your belongings, because now...well, now everything starts to happen! **

**Chapter 5**

Tarrant had seen things is his life to be sure, but the way Alice looked at him when she revealed this made it seem all the more grim. There was something dastardly at work, and being the crazy man he was, he couldn't and wouldn't risk delving into some long and tedious mental escapade. No, there just wasn't any way he could fathom it, so he resorted to simpler methods. In other words, he asked Alice strait out.

"What did you see?"

Just as suddenly as she had divulged the information to him, she grew eerily quiet. "I don't want to hurt you again."

"Hurt _me_? Alice, in case you hadn't noticed, I am not the one who passed out randomly. That would be you. Recall the old saying: sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me! Unless, of course those words happen to be written on a piece of paper and wrapped around a rock..."

Though she didn't directly express it, Alice hid a smile, but quickly the reality of the matter set in again. Fragilely, Tarrant placed his right hand lightly on her arm, noticing the contrast. When Alice glanced down, he wondered vaguely if she harbored any disgust for the scars. Even though it was essentially sheathed in a makeshift glove of sorts, constructed out of a fresh piece of plaid cloth, he immediately regretted the action. Why had he done it in the first place then? _Only time will tell_...A voice in his head reminded him.

His eyes rolled upward slightly. "Yes, but you _do_ know I must wonder when that time will be. You really should be quiet." When Alice saw him scolding what appeared to her to be some sort of imaginary friend, she gave him a look that displayed her worry. Tarrant cracked an abrupt grin, clearing his throat, "Everything's good."

Whether she believed him or not wasn't apparent, but when her gaze was not centered directly on his face, he mouthed something to himself. Then, her voice pierced any other contemplations he may have been having. "Do you remember when I came to see you before this happened to me?" He nodded faintly. "I told you of the visitor I had, and you...well, you seemed to have some sort of connection with him."

"I do...but what that connection is is still quite unclear I'm afraid. I feel very sad when I think of him for some reason, and it makes me even more cheerless when my memory lets me down. Curse this deliria of mine! The devil take it!" He ended in a snap, shouting at no one, but appearing to address everyone. "Sorry..." The muttering conclusion came after a few seconds of complete silence.

Tarrant heard Alice mutter, "Thus the reason why I was reluctant to bring him up..."

"Oh, quiet all right, I assure you. It was a simple lapse in my mental stability; it happens all the time!"

Alice looked tired. "I need rest, but if I close my eyes, I fear what I may find. Such nightmares aren't exactly what I'm used to. Do you think its because I am here that my mind tortures me so?"

Withdrawing his hand to scratch his chin, Tarrant tilted his head incredulously. "Hm...I never really thought about that to tell you the truth." His eyes thinned, and he shifted concurrently. "You know, Alice, I know of this place that nobody else knows about. It usually helps me think clearly. Maybe it would help you?"

Smiling despite her headache, Alice agreed. "That would be wonderful. Thank you." She braced her arms out to the sides of her body and pushed herself up, but for a third time, Tarrant had to hold her back. Alice consented at last, and said, "Tomorrow then, perhaps?"

"Tomorrow would be lovely, yes, but only if you're feeling better."

And he wondered just exactly when he became a judge concerning Alice's health.

_Life is so...weird_...

000

"My Queen." Tarrant accosted when he had located her, and she turned. The White Queen smiled kindly at him, and waited for him to catch up with her. He had been searching, and with intent at that. He offered her his arm and she took it with great appreciation. They walked countless paces, until the queen's calm voice pervaded his whirlwind of thoughts. At first, he wasn't sure he even knew the answer to the question she posed, but the more he reached into his mind, it was soon apparent what he had come to do.

"What is it, Tarrant?"

"I have just seen Alice," he inhaled excitedly, "and she has given me a most magnificent idea!"

Happy to see him expressing joy for the first time in days, the queen nodded animatedly. "I'm so pleased that you're in high spirits! Tell me, what is this magnificent idea?"

Glancing back and forth, he motioned for her to lean in, and told her in a hushed tone, so that no one else would know, though spectators were few and far between. The woman in white clasped her hands to herself with joy. She appreciated the heart behind his suggestion, and could not turn him down; this he knew. Tarrant canted his head while she appeared amazed, and distractedly wound his index finger around in his hair, rocking back and forth on his toes. He anticipated a good answer, though he would accept her judgment. She laughed softly at his antics; he knew he amused her, but couldn't quite grasp how. He was just being himself!

"I love it." She said at length. "Why is it that you've never told me about this place before?"

Tarrant forced a small shrug. "I had no need to...Why, someone like yourself who is so obviously psychologically stable in every which way hasn't a reason to seek such a place! Twas not a subject Your Majesty would find interest in, I thought."

The White Queen sighed lightly. "You are such a extraordinarily unique man-"

"Thank you." He piped up.

"-and whatever you deem important is, without doubt important to your peers. You should have more self confidence. People appreciate you, more than you know."

"I'm not entirely sure...at least I think I'm not. They tend, if I may say, to look at me strangely, as if they think I am going to lash out and throttle them at any moment...It frightens me sometimes. I don't think I've ever done anything to hurt them...have I?"

"No! No..." She linked her arm with his again, and they walked again. "Perhaps it isn't _you_, but instead what people _think_."

Tarrant mentally stumbled. "Is there really that much of a difference?"

"More than you know." Laughing cheerfully, she went on. "Oh...I'm sure your idea will help her, Tarrant! And it has been so gorgeous outdoors lately-the seasonal rains have been delayed, and I believe it is because of our dear visitor. She makes everything seem so bright!"

"Heh. Yes."

"I can't help but notice, as well," the queen furthered, "that you have been happier lately."

Jerking his head upward, Tarrant giggled. "Why of course I have! The bloody Red Queen is no more and the Jabberwocky has been slain! Everything is back to the way it was, and I am back to my old task again. Seeing so many wonderful hats makes me feel limitless delight!"

"Ah, of course." A small smirk informed Tarrant of what she was thinking, and, feeling uncomfortable, he abruptly dismissed himself.

"I must go now. I have arranges to thing-er, things to arrange, rather, and the day grows old. Good day, my Queen."

Hurrying on his way, arms swinging at his sides, Tarrant left the White Queen standing alone in the bright corridor, and she knew she had hit a nerve.

000

"So, where is this place you told me about?" Alice asked, curious as to the whereabouts of the Hatter's so-called "thinking spot". In turn, the Hatter smiled secretively and motioned for her to continue following him. They walked down a path leading away from the castle, framed by white rose bushes and covered intermittently with vine covered trellises. Alice, adorned in a light green dress-she was happy just to have color, even if it wasn't one of her favorites-ambled along behind her friend, admiring his new overcoat, which was a shade of light tan. It differed from the original one he had been wearing when she had first arrived back, despite first glances. Teeming with questions, Alice held her tongue, wondering if the place they were headed was even on the castle grounds. In due course, she spotted a white building in the distance. "What is that, Hatter?" She queried, matching his pace. He didn't answer.

Out of nowhere, a huge smiling face appeared right in front of Alice, causing her to stop dead in her tracks. The Hatter stopped as well, and turned to look over his shoulder. "Hello to you to Chess." He said to the moody feline, raising both hands to the brim of his hat protectively. "I don't suppose you have a reason for being out and about today, hm?"

"Oh, dry up...I was just"-he vanished and reappeared right next to the Hatter's head-"dropping in, so to speak. Actually, I've come around to see Alice...and your hat." Chessur reached a paw out to touch it, but the Hatter backed away without further thought.

"Mine." He told the cat selfishly, prompting a sigh from the animal. "It's mine." He repeated, childlike in tone.

"For now..." Chessur smiled craftily, the pupils in his eyes widening as he turned back to Alice. "So, what is the purpose of your journey to the stables, might I ask?"

Alice shifted in surprise. "Oh, you didn't tell me that's where we're going."

Removing his profoundly watchful gaze from Chessur for a brief moment, the Hatter's expression was thoughtful. "Is that a problem?" He asked a little disconcertedly. There wasn't any sarcasm in the inquiry, and it was more along the lines of incorruptibility than cynicism. "Because if it is I'm sure we can think of something else to so. There's just so much around this area and I know-" He stopped when he saw Alice giggle. "Something funny?"

"No no! I just find it humorous the way you go off on tangents all the time."

The Hatter grinned as well. "I do?"

"Of course!"

Chessur stepped in, quite literally. He appeared in front of both of them, looking at Alice from upside-down. "As much as I _hate_ breaking up your cute little conversations, time is wasting, and if you both stand here much longer, it will be dark." He flipped to address the Hatter. "You wouldn't want to be endangering Alice by taking her out after hours would you, Tarrant?"

The intense color around the Hatter's eyes darkened, making Alice aware that he was about to go into one of his 'states' caused by the multi-personality disorder that afflicted him, but surprisingly, he restrained himself. With his mouth in a tight line, he beckoned Alice to follow him again and mumbled at Chessur on the way by: "I don't like you."

The cat floated after them, evaporating in and out of the picture. Alice soon was admiring the large building used to house the Queen's horses, all white no doubt. Two servants stood by the doors and opened them when the three approached. Alice walked behind the Hatter, her shoes tapping against the clean, marble floor. _Strange, considering this _is_ a stable_...She observed, peering into the individual stalls as she passed them. Chessur paused to sit atop one of the stall doors, and the white steed occupying it came over to greet him. The feline turned up his nose and disappeared. Alice didn't see where he went. The Hatter, meanwhile, was turning his head from left to right, looking out of place, as usual. His color was a sight for sore eyes in the never-ending area of white to be sure, but even he knew that he didn't exactly blend in. He was probably used to it, after all...he _had_ served the Queen for a long time before Alice came to Underland. Ultimately, the same two servants that had been at the doors brought two horses out. Alice went to the Hatter's side and waited, her arms crossed in anticipation.

"I trust you know how to ride?" He dared asking in an undertone. She nodded. "Oh! Wonderful!" He laughed in his ever familiar way.

"I did so with the Bandersnatch, several times in fact. Don't you remember?"

"Well, yes, but, that horrid creature was quite different, and I wasn't sure..."

Alice heard a scuffling sound, and saw Chessur, holding onto the tail of a small brown mouse. The poor smaller creature struggled to escape, creating quite a scraping sound with its claws on the marble floor. Just thinking that she should help the mouse, a small, shrill voice pierced the awkward silence.

"Don't you dare, Chess!" That was the voice of Mallymkun, and she came out of nowhere, scurrying on her little dormouse feet strait up to Chessur and her trapped cousin. Could she have been there the whole time? The Cheshire Cat smiled hugely, lifting his paw from what would have been his prey's tail. He drifting up to a height where Mallymkun couldn't get at him, and gazed down on her with the wide viridian orbs that were his eyes. "I thought you knew better!"

"So sorry, dear..." He drawled, vainly studying a claw he had flicked out. "I forgot to check to see if you were here first."

Their bickering went on.

Alice raised a question to the Mad Hatter in the same undertone he had used for her previously, "Can he even _eat_?"

"_No_ idea." The Hatter replied with a shrug, then raising his voice. "Shall we be off then?"

"Where are we going?" Mallymkun said, sending her other mouse friend off and keeping a wary eye on Chessur. "I do love a trip!"

Straitening his hat by habit, the Hatter slowly shook his head at her, trying to look inconspicuous. Alice stood by. "Vast apologies, Mally, but this is not a "perilous journey", and would very much bore you I'm afraid. It is, instead a trip to ease the mind of our above-world visitor, who needs a mental vacation."

Chessur cut in. "So you're under the impression that your influence can give that to her? Lovely...now we'll have another loon in the pack."

"Alice is most assuredly not a loon. She exhibits no behavior that gives any such inklings that she wishes to become a diving, dodgy, fish-eating waterfowl! At least...I don't think you do...do you Alice?" She immediately shook her head. "See!" The Hatter stabbed a finger in the cat's face. "That will teach you to consider your words before they come a'tumbling out of your overly large mouth!"

"An amusing slur from a man with saucers for eyes." Chessur yawned toothily. "I'm tired of this pointless argument, and really must go. A joy seeing you all though...well...most of you that is." Alice had approached the horse that was designated for her, when Chessur materialized on its back. "Have a nice day, love." He purred, ebbing until all that remained was his eyes and mouth, then they too petered out.

The Hatter offered his hand for Mallymkun to step up onto, and he held her before him in his open palm. She stood there with her tiny paws crossed, a grimace on her equally small mouth. Her nose twitched in irritation. "I'm sorry, Mally, really I am. But you're so small, and you will be much safer if you stay here." His eyes crossed when the dormouse withdrew the needle she used as a weapon and extended it towards the bridge of his nose. He gave a small yipe when she poked him, moving his arm away from his face. "Oh don't be angry, please? I don't like it when people are angry with me because it makes me feel so sad inside..."

Mallymkun responded with a huff. "That wasn't because I'm angry, Hatter, that was to give you an idea of what will happen should I hear of any indefinite goings-on. You know very well Queen Mirana's standings on your request to take Alice off the grounds."

"Yes, Mally, of course I do. Now if you'll excuse me." He set her down securely on the ground, turning his attention squarely to Alice, who gave him a puzzled look. "What?"

Alice gestured to the horse. "There's no riding equipment on it."

"Oh...that..."

"Yes, "oh that"."

The Hatter chuckled. "You don't need that here in Underland, silly! No one is going to...to _shout_ at you if you're seen riding bareback."

So there is was, he admitted to it. She would have to ride the animal without a saddle or even a bridle. "Then, how am I to actually mount up?"

The Hatter, being the kind fellow he was, drew near to the white horse and dropped to one knee. "Easy as pie. I trust you're rather light? I think I have a bad back..."

A smile quirked at her lips, and she placed her foot up onto the makeshift step he had made for her. She heard a small gasp of surprise and looked down. He exhaled rapidly in a manner that made it seem like he was laughing, and then a genuine chortle came from him. She might have misread his expression, but he looked embarrassed about something. "What is it?"

"You don't wear stockings." He pointed out, beaming juvenilely, and then he further in a voice quiet enough that he hoped Mallymkun wouldn't hear, "And you're lighter then I thought you'd be..."

Not saying anything in reply, Alice didn't know what to make of the comment, but placed her hands steadily on the back of the horse and pushed herself up. The large animal moved slightly, but Alice managed to swing her left leg over the other side, bestriding the horse even as she was wearing a dress. The Hatter bounded to his feet and circled around the two living beings a moment before nodding in satisfaction. "Yes. Quite natural looking, you and Della." He remarked, making her aware of the animal's name before nimbly climbing atop his own ride. _He doesn't strike me as the type to even know how to act around horses_...Alice commented mentally, watching him casually stroke the neck of the equine with two fingers. Briefly wondering whether his fingers were rough or not from the scarring, her indiscriminate thoughts were cut short when he looked up from saying something in the horse's ear. "Are we ready to depart?"

"Yes."

Pushing his hat down firmly onto his head so that it would not be lost to the wind, the Hatter nudged the horse with the heel of his shoe, saying in a low voice, "Go, Flight." At the sound of its name and the signal to move, it walked forward towards the exit. Alice shrugged off anything that might have been hindering her from doing the same, and entwining her hands in the gray-white mane, made Della walk on after the Hatter. Mallymkun traveled along beside her on her way to the door.

"I'd better not here of you getting hurt again, you hear?" She said edgily.

"I will be careful, Mallymkun, I can promise you that. I'm sure the Hatter will not let anything happen to me."

The dormouse stopped following Alice, and said just as the young woman was about to leave hearing range, "As true as that may be, there are many other things he has no control over..."

Anxious over the meaning behind the declaration, Alice almost immediately forgot as soon as she and Della stepped foot outside the stables into the warm sunshine. The sky was cloudless, and was a clear, bright blue above. The warm rays felt good to one who had been stuck in bed for over five days. She felt like a butterfly finally breaking out of its cocoon, which made her think of that wise caterpillar. Reflecting on the odds that the tiny, blue insect might have been freed from his own chrysalis, she joined the Hatter at the edge of the path they had journeyed to arrive at the structure in the first place. He glanced at her before a mischievous smile made Alice feel uneasy. That look only meant one thing, and one thing only: the cogs in his head were turning, and they would produce some very mad results. With a snicker, the madman gave Flight a good kick, and it took off gradually. By the time it was twenty feet away, it had entered into a gallop, and the length of cloth around his hat whipped out behind him, as well as the back of his overcoat. Alice closed her eyes, shook her head, then copied him and urged Della on with the same amount of kicks.

She braced herself, pressing her knees into Della's sides and clutching more handfuls of mane before the pounding hoof beats quickened beneath her. Alice's golden hair thrashed about, and she worried for the back of her dress, which had already begun to catch the wind. Nevertheless, she kept up the pace, catching her comrade before he had crossed a rise. Down the other side of the hill they went, entering an expanse of flat ground, dotted with lush trees. When Alice saw a small sign that said they had just traversed what was considered "safe ground", she began to grow uncomfortable yet energized. It was exciting that she was off on another adventure, even if it was only for a few hours, and this time, there would be _no_ encounters with the Red Queen to mar it. Once in awhile, she would catch faint words from the Hatter to his horse. He seemed to be having a one-sided conversation with it whenever Alice risked a glimpse. Oh well. She chose not to judge him for his actions long ago, and now was no exception. He also was a better rider than she, and having that advantage gave him room to balance enough to lean down by Flight's ear and speak to it.

Della's steady rocking gallop made Alice become accustomed to it far faster than she anticipated, and she was soon directly beside her crazy friend, who turned his head to her and laughed thoroughly, then, somehow made Flight quicken its pace. Alice drew a stiff breath and before she could even stop herself, she had forced Della on. The horse's breath was labored; its sides heaved with effort, but still, on it went, like it was bred to do. It was thrilling-like nothing Alice Kingsleigh had ever been allowed to do back home living in high society. The beautiful landscape was breathtaking, and with the mixture of that and the Hatter's nonsensical musings that she caught fragments of, it was a good day indeed. It was at times like these that Alice knew that Wonderland was where she belonged, a place where she was accepted for who she was and not some aristocratic bachelor girl whose mother wanted nothing more than to marry her off to rich elitists like Hamish Ascot. It was sick. But here..._here_ she was comfortable. Here she was home. But for how long...?

After a long while, out of kindness, she pulled Della to a stop for a rest, for the poor creature was salivating around the mouth like a rabid beast. The Hatter noticed this after a few seconds, seeing as Alice had been right at his side, and maneuvered Flight around. Sliding off the horse's back agilely, he made a vague hand motion at it and then approached Alice. She petted Della's muzzle gently, talking to the tired animal in quieted tones. Standing behind her, the Hatter chuckled at Alice's actions.

"What?" She asked.

"Nothing, nothing..."

Alice faced him when Della had moved away. "Why do you talk to your horse?"

He mustn't have been expecting the question, because he looked stumped for a moment or two about how to answer. "People...like _me_, need to keep ourselves talking, or we'll go mad."

"But you're already mad."

The Hatter's eyes widened, and Alice nearly burst out laughing, recalling Chessur's comment about him having saucers for eyes. "So that's why it's not working then. The quiet scares me, Alice. I cannot sit in a quiet room or I will begin speaking to myself, which is another practice I greatly encourage...as well as answering myself after I talk." His face scrunched up with mental exertion. "I don't know why I talk to Flight, but between you and me"-he put a hand up by his mouth to muffle his voice-"I think it annoys the thing."

As if Flight had the ability to comprehend what the two humans were talking about, its neck snapped up from the grass which it ate, and it snorted loudly with a throw of its head. The Hatter's expression screamed: "I don't know what you're talking about".

"Where are you taking me?" Alice went on. If he was in a question-answer type of mood, why not? What was there to risk.

He raised a finger and shook it, tsking her a few times. "You should know by now not to ask question which you know will not be answered. If I were to ask you why a raven is like a writing desk, would you have an answer for _me_?"

_He has a point_...

"No. But that is different."

The Hatter went to Flight and lead it over to where the other horse was. "Is it?"

After being helped back up onto Della, they continued on without another word about it, and Alice finally accepted that it was going to be a surprise, and that she could do nothing to ruin it. He was resolute about something, and if he was trying _that_ hard, there was no telling what was in store for her.

000

In a room cloaked in darkness, Barabbas Thayer sat idly in a chair hewn from solid rock. His gloved fingers drummed impatiently on the arm rests, and the brim of his black top hat fell low over his daunting eyes. At his side, one of his minions was positioned at complete attention, back strait and head forcefully held high. Its master expected no less from it, that much was certain. Quite vainly, Thayer studied his fingers, rolling his neck. His sharp teeth clicked together, another product of his restless intolerance. Above him, bats lined the ceiling, squeaking and creeping around with their red eyes wide. In time, one by one, the strange cat-like creatures entered the dark place, their claws scraping upon the hard rock floor. Thayer was to his feet, and extended his arm to the side to have the handle of a can placed in his opened hand. Walking intently down the steps leading up to his throne, he met Lucifer halfway and stared at the beast, mouth hard-set.

"Well?" Thayer snapped, growling only just.

"Master, we have found them with little delay..."

An evil smile formed on his lips, and the words dripped off his tongue with triumphant vehemence. "Excellent. Bring them in."

Lucifer swiftly went out for a moment, and slowly, two figures appeared at the doorway. One was tall, and dwarfed the shorter one. A creature brought in a light source, standing before Thayer. As they materialized into the area of light, Thayer noted that their appearances were haggard, and dirt covered their faces in multiple locations. Both of them stared hard at the strange man in red, and the shorter one seemed to recognize him...as it well should have been. Thayer spread out his arms in greeting, then raised to fingers to his hat. He leaned on his cane, nonchalantly crossing one foot over the other, but could not hide his enthusiasm. His face told all. The mere way he smirked, paired with the widened look of his serpent-like eyes. He could feel the individual black hairs on the back of his neck stand on end at the look the two gave him. _Oh yes._.._they know_..._they most _certainly _know_...

Nearing them, his eyes flicked over both in turn, taking care to notice the subtle details of their profiles. He then opened his mouth to speak. His words were trapped in his throat for a second longer than he anticipated, and his breath came in short exhales and inhales; he could not contain his eagerness. With the help he was about to get, Alice Kingsleigh would soon succumb to his master plan. It was finally all taking shape. _Marvelous_...

"Hello Iracebeth...It is so _nice_ to see you're alive..." Thayer murmured in a hiss, drawling out every syllable.

The Red Queen studied him, then looked hatefully up to the Knave at her side. She held up her shackled wrist, forcing the man called Stayne's up as well. "Separate me from this traitor, and we'll talk." She retorted.

Thayer was only too happy to oblige.

000

**SHE'S BACK! RUN; SAVE YOURSELVES!**

**Kay then...**_**Where is the Mad Hatter taking Alice**_**? Send me ideas in messages or say so in reviews. I'm drained right now, and I don't think that I can create a totally unique place in under a few weeks. Thanks again for all your support! The next chapter will feature more of the Red Queen hopefully, and other stuff.**


	7. Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Numerous lines in this chapter belong respectively to the band Oomph! although I have used the English version, because the German version didn't rhyme when translated. In the next chapter there are also come scenes based off their music video to Labyrinth; just saying it now to be done with it...**

**Warm and jolly greetings all! Yes, I am back, with the next installment of our saga, and have determined after what has seemed like a millennium of time where the location I was mulling over should be! And as always, thank ye kindly for your reviews; I updated this for my school friend whose been asking for it. **_**On that note, read her amazing story! Her names' Ashasmasher. Her storys' about emo people. 'Nuff said. **_**Yeah, I got your back buddy...Anyways, huge amounts of gratitude **_**would**_** be sent out, naturally, but I haven't the chance at home because we don't have internet, and the library where I go blocked FanFiction...I wonder why? ;) So, I'm stuck using McDonalds wi-fi, which tends to get on my mother\father's nerves seeing as they have to sit there waiting for me and...Where was I going with this? Oh yes, that, my friends, is why I can't reply to your reviews, but be aware that I appreciate and love every single one!**__**Of course, of course...now you may allow your eyes to meander this chapter. **

**LEAVE ME SOME NICE REVIEWS!**

**Chapter 6**

Alice followed the Hatter on horseback into a lush forest of exotic plants. The path was narrow, and Della appeared to be jittery at the sight of the very-alive, moving vegetation and flowers. Some one them spoke; others watched with ghostly indifference. The other horse, Flight, was more sure of itself, and sped along without a care. The Hatter still talked to the animal, and Alice swore she could sometimes hear Flight respond. She wouldn't put it past Underland creatures. Similar thoughts plagued her mind throughout the trip, distracting her from wondering where they were headed after all the time spent on their horses. Alice wanted very much to say something to her friend, but after glancing in his direction, she saw that he appeared preoccupied with something as well. He had stopped speaking to Flight, and now harbored a strange, absorbed expression on his face, and frankly, Alice had no desire to know what was going on inside of his head. Every once in a while, he would smile subtly and laugh quietly to himself, intensifying Alice's private declaration even more so.

In any case, the surroundings _were_ breathtaking. The fact was being proven again and again: the farther she got from Marmoreal, the more colorful everything became. Happiness started to take over, and all at once she forgot about everything to do with Barabbas Thayer and her own uncontrollable emotions. All she felt was the wind in her hair, and the scent of foreign lands enveloping her as she and Della followed their companions. It seemed that things were looking up for once. The circumstances she was in at the present time made her feel like she was on top of the world. She was out far away from civilization-if _anything_ in the strange world could be considered such-with her closest friend as of late, and in the best spirits she had been in since defeating the Jabberwocky. Indeed, nothing could crush the wonderful mood she was in...at least that was what she prayed.

As it always seemed to be, on cue, Alice's vision started to blur, and she called up to the Hatter, grimly requesting an impromptu break. He, being the type to pick up on things easily about a person, saw that there was something wrong before Alice herself admitted it to him. The Hatter pulled Flight around in front of Alice, who had wound her hands so tightly in Della's mane that the horse was in obvious discomfort. It was probably just something she ate, she reminded herself, desperately clinging to the assumption. A pair of hands helped her let go, and she slowly swung her leg over Della's back, sliding off with her palm to her forehead. Along with the blurry vision, she felt suddenly very lightheaded. Her feet landed in a rather deep puddle caused by a depression in the path, and she uttered a small cry as she stepped out of it. This couldn't be happening! Not _now_! It was like _he_ knew exactly when to attack her. Fairly sure that she would begin to see things soon, she went, whimpering like a child over to a nearby rock, guided by the Hatter, who was looking quite panicky himself. His eyes had gone wider than she had ever seen them, and instead of his kindhearted smile, he wore a frown. Alice didn't care though; she _couldn't_ care, because all happy emotion was driven from her by that point. To an outsider, it would have been amazing how quickly she was ruined by one man...

She lowered herself down onto the rock, expression blank, like one would expect on a resident of an asylum. Another soft sound escaped her, and she refused to look at her friend, terrified at what she would see. "Shh...it's okay..." She heard him soothe, and felt his hand patting her on the back calmly. "I know what it's like...It will all go away, I promise..."

But it did not go away. It only got worse. When at last she dragged her gaze away from the ground directly below her, she could barely suppress a complete breakdown.

The puddle she had just landed in, and all the other puddles around it were made of blood-crimson, thick blood that abruptly had covered her boots. The horses tossed their heads in agitation, stomping their feet in the mess and sending droplets flying everywhere. Some landed on her white dress; permanent stains that devastated the pure material. She watched a single drop about the size of a coin run down over her knee, descending down to the hem of her attire, where it hesitated a instant before falling to the ground. Her heart pounded through her entire body, a loud remembrance, like that of thunder. The world around her was now tinted with red. She stared emptily at the circular expanse of blood before her and shuddered. A muffled voice from the Hatter was all she heard, until the haunting whispering came...

"Knock, knock, let me in...Let me be your secret sin..." The words were slurred and grating, echoing around Alice's head over and over again. Each time they were said, it would be as if the speaker was pronouncing them directly into her ear. "Knock, knock, let me in...Let me be your secret sin..."

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a movement. Turning her head, she saw a creature-a rabbit. It was black as night with frighteningly demonic eyes and sleek fur that reflected the sunlight. When she looked at it, it did not move. It crouched their, staring at her, and she was certain that she could see it smiling evilly; the smile of her mental aggressor. The smile of Barabbas Thayer. After many fear-provoking moments, it rose in an agonizingly slow manner up onto its hind legs, and reached a paw out in her direction. Extending a single claw-like toe, it motioned for her to follow it, and then bounded off around a bush, acting more like a true rabbit than she had seen yet. Darting up from the rock on which she and the Hatter sat, Alice ran after it blindly, unaware of her friend's worried calls behind her. On and on the recurring whisper went, and she followed the black rabbit over terrain riddled with fallen trees and abundant undergrowth. The greenery scratched at her, but she was not herself; she did nothing. At times, she would wonder where the one she was chasing after had gone, only to be mildly spooked when she turned to find it perched on a log smiling at her eerily, then it would take off once more. With the endless chanting in her head, she hadn't the concentration nor will to wonder where she was being lead, and also couldn't hear the Hatter's frantic shouting somewhere behind her. When it had been a long time, Alice's foot caught on something in her path, and she fell forward, hitting the rocky ground hard.

The voice stopped. A low laugh replaced it, and then all was silent.

Gathering her composure through shattered nerves, she raised her head painfully to be met by an intense light radiating inches from her vantage point. The red tint had faded away with the voice, but the way the brightness affected her, Alice preferred _that_ over what was.

"You must go no further..." Said a light, airy voice. Alice tilted her head back further, seeing, to her surprise, a little girl with brilliant white hair. It was _her_. Either Alice was losing all consciousness to the real world, or the dreamlike vision she had experienced back during the celebration was standing right in front of her. In her small arms she held her white cat. _Am I insane_...? She thought, realizing that the haze that had previously taken control of her mind was gone. "No, Alice..." The girl told her softly, reading her thoughts. "You are not...And you must go no further...The being you are following is evil..."

Alice sat up, clutching at her head. There was a large gash on her temple, and blood-_real_ blood, trickled down her face. "It's just a rabbit, I don't see how it can hurt me." She stated matter-of-factly. The girl looked sad.

"No...It is not a rabbit...What you are seeing is something _he_ wants you to see...You are seeing nothing...You are following an illusion forced upon you by an evil man...Stop now, and wait for your friend to find you..."

"_Knock, knock let me in...Let me be your secret sin..._" It was quieter than ever, coming as more of a plea than anything else. "_Let me be your secret, Alice_..."

"_No_!" The girl shrieked in horror. The cat jumped from her grip onto the ground. Her neck snapped back, and she vanished with her arms outspread, and the white cat soon vanished as well. In their wake, Alice was face to face with the black rabbit again. Its wicked smile was even more prominent, and the glint in its malicious eyes beckoned her onward. She did not resist; the voice tempted her back to her feet. It was not recurring anymore, but instead filled her head with dark promises that would have appalled her only seconds ago. Something told her that the girl she had just seen was a hindrance-an evil spirit that only wanted to delay her with its lies. In the small part of her mind that registered what was actually happening to her, she was astounded how quickly she was being thrown back and forth between the two points of view. It was all Thayer's fault. He was doing this to her! It was all part of his plan! There _had_ to be a way of resistance! No...no...She could not do that, not with all the things he was saying he would make happen..._Fight this! _The part of her that was above the stupor demanded, determined to win; to not give up like last time. No man's false words of inducement could bring her to her knees so easily! She had to find the Hatter. She had to beg for his help somehow! Where was he when she needed him most! "_He's gone, stupid girl..._" A voice of reason told her in the form of a drawling, deep resonance over the vicious, contesting whispering. It sounded like Absolem, the wise caterpillar who she had not seen since his withdraw into a cocoon. "_Even a fool can see you lost him ages ago_..."

And from her came a scream unlike any other, echoing around the red forest more so than the things in her head. Just as quickly, she clamped her mouth shut, hoping that the Hatter had not heard her. _Shut. UP! Keep following the rabbit and do NOT oppose!_

Alice _did_ oppose. She stopped dead, more and more of her willing to cooperate with the rebellion. Her confidence was ruined, however, when not one, but two of the black rabbits came out of the trees on either side of her, then two more...then more, then more, then more, until she was surrounded by malevolent, grinning black creatures, all of which remained motionless as they stared at her with bleak fascination. Their eyes, all identical to the rabbit next to them, were hard enough to bear, but when they started to sway in unison to the steady whispering that she had been sure only she could hear, it was too much to take.

"Help!" She cried weakly, as the tears began to pour down her bloodied face. "_Help me_!"

"_Do not give in to them, they will change forms..._" It brought no comfort.

Just as Absolem's voice had finished its warning, all of the rabbits stopped moving, and one by one, they evaporated like Chessur into individual clouds of black smoke, developing into an evocatively recognizable frame. Within minutes, Thayer stood there in the middle of the forest, arms outspread.

He stared profoundly, and Alice dropped to her knees with no power over her own movements. "Now what was that about not being brought to your knees so easily? My, my...we have so much _work_ to do..._don't_ we Alice?"

"What do you want!" She snarled in a tone that she was scared to know she even possessed.

"Isn't it obvious?" Like that he was behind her, both gloved hands centimeters from touching her, but he did not close the gap. "_You_...Let me be your secret sin..." A pained look appeared on his sharp-featured countenance. "But..." He drew a sharp breath, aggrieved. "I am not..._me_...I can do nothing, Alice." Maybe it was the plainly hungry expression he had that told her that the situation had been made better by his lack of audience, but it sent apprehension all through her all the same. He perked up like a hunted animal, jerked his head around fretfully all of a sudden, and leapt to his feet. "Your friend is near...Give Tarrant my regards..." He swept off his black top hat, gave an orderly bow, and disappeared. The black rabbit was in his place, smirking so sadistically that it sent chills down Alice's spine. All the whispering in her head had left once more, probably for good for the time being, and she could perceive sound easily. The Hatter was close.

"You had better hope that you aren't here when he finds me." She spoke to the rabbit, but found that it had gone, and with a sickeningly real feeling that it had never been there in the first place, she called out, waiting to be located by what sounded like a very distraught Hatter.

"I'm here!" She called, pressing her hand very firmly into the wound on the side of her head. Faintly, she slowly stood, searching for any remaining signs of the rabbit. Eventually, the Hatter emerged from the undergrowth, disgruntled. He gave a tiny exclamation of relief, before gathering her into a crushing embrace, something he had never done before. All preceding fear went away, and Alice felt so much safer knowing that there was someone else there to support her, disturbed brain or not. Well...at least the person who was offering the encouragement was equally, if not more unstable. She relaxed, and when the Hatter had pulled back, his thoughts were unreadable.

"Why, look at you Alice," he said with a moving smile, "you're positively a wreck."

000

Thayer's absorption in the scene at hand was torn apart when a piercing voice penetrated his train of thought. He opened one black-outlined eye to see the Red Queen peering at him inexplicably. She had made herself comfortable-or at least tried to-on his own makeshift "throne", and had offered more than enough complaints about the lack of service in his home. Funny, coming from a _prisoner_. Perhaps he should have mentioned that to her before...

"What were you doing?" She asked him curtly, expecting an immediate answer.

Thayer allowed a smirk. "I haven't any idea what you are talking about. I was merely..._resting my eyes_."

"No you weren't. You were _talking_ to someone!"

Smoothly changing the subject, his smirk turned falsely amiable, but it seemed to convince her. "Would you like some tea, Iracebeth?" He then furthered, "Mind you it's not up to your standards, but we can see what we can do, can't we?"

But she was not paying attention. She looked down her nose at him seriously, eyes narrowing with some hidden disdain. "Where is Stayne?" She demanded, drumming her fingers restlessly together. "Oh, never mind. I don't care, as long as you've locked him away somewhere dreadful."

Thayer lurked around her pausing when he was behind where she sat to speak. "I am pleased to tell you that the Knave's fate it quite a bit more satisfying than keeping him here to rot under lock and key..."

"Why ever not?" Said the Red Queen in a whining voice. "That despicable man deserves only the worst...after what he tried to do."

Chuckling, Thayer came around and bent down next to her, hissing like the serpent he was into her ear, "No, Majesty...You see I have placed him in a position that will bring you great delight." She turned her head to look at him, an air of skepticism coming over her. She hid not her misgivings. Thayer took the opportunity to stand to his full height and call out, "Bring him in!"

Through the doors, one of Thayer's minions came, gripping tightly in its mouth a thick chain. At the end of the chain, shackled and bruised, was a very battered looking Stayne. The queen applauded loudly, amused. She laughed at the man who was once her loyal servant, now humbled under the magnitude of Barabbas Thayer. Stayne scowled, but held his tongue. The eye patch he had at one point worn in the shape of a heart had been stripped away, exposing an ugly void where his right eye used to be. He seemed quite mortified, as he should have been. His armor was also gone, replaced by a loose type of material that formed into a type of tunic. The Red Queen's entertainment with the spectacle went on until she finally stopped laughing and pointing long enough to comment.

"I love it. I love it. I love it!" She cried, grasping Thayer's arm with glee. "Have you taught him any tricks to accompany his improved look, Barabbas?"

Twitching only just at the use of his first name, Thayer sighed and forced a smile. "Alas, my lady, I haven't had the time to orchestrate such an elaborate display, but I assure you that-"

But she wouldn't let him finish. "I want to see him act like an idiot! If I'm going to live here I am at least entitled to some entertainment to pass the time!" Her face had gone scarlet, and her eyes glinted with a buried rage. The woman was a ticking time bomb, just waiting to explode when she got incensed.

Thayer had no thoughts of refusing, no matter how impossible that task seemed at the time. The Red Queen was just another piece of the puzzle. As soon as he had wound her around his finger enough, he would control her, and then instigate his master plan for ensnaring young Alice Kingsleigh.

It was just too perfect.

"I'm waiting Barabbas!" The queen shouted at the top of her lungs.

Well...nearly perfect. Thayer took a glance of resignation at Stayne, who had lowered his head out of shame. The clock just kept on ticking didn't it? _How charming_...

000

"Are you entirely, definitely, unquestionably positive that you are okay, Alice?" Tarrant asked her for about the tenth time since he had found her. The sheer joy of locating her had been enough to put him a complicated emotional state, and now they walked side by side back through the vividly colored forest. He hadn't the slightest idea about what to do for Alice's injury, not being the medical type, but offered a length of cloth he fished out of the interior of his overcoat, which she tied haphazardly on an angle around her head. In the aftermath of her bizarre journey after whatever it was that she'd seen, she was very quiet, only mentioning something about following a black rabbit, and he mostly spoke to himself. It was okay, though. Such was normal for a man like himself. Still, he would have liked _some_ response, for all his concerned-not to mention serious, which was a rare thing for him-questions were worth. He waved a hand rapidly in front of her face, "Alice!"

"He told me to give you his regards..." She confessed quietly without showing any signs that she was even paying attention to Tarrant's other inquiries.

"What are you talking about?"

"Him..._Thayer_...He knows you."

Trepidation made his stomach flip over. "Yes...and I know him." He said quickly; dismissively. "But _are you okay_?"

"All the while I heard his voice in my head, Hatter!" Alice blurted out, making his brow crease thoughtfully at the concept. What could he possibly have to say to her? "Over and over again he was whispering things to me. "Knock, knock, let me in, let me be your secret sin", things like that. That was all I could hear!"

The words she had uttered made his heart skip a beat out of anxiety. Other then the underlying risqué nature of the small sentence, it was a whole nother thing for this man to somehow repeat it in an ongoing fashion in Alice's head. How did he even do it anyway! Tarrant couldn't figure it out, no matter how many outrageous notions he thought up. He swallowed with difficulty, contemplating Alice, pity showing itself about him. "I don't know how he's doing it," he said, allowing time for it to sink in, "but there has to be some way for you to be able to resist." If there really _was_ a way, he couldn't blame himself if it didn't work out. It wouldn't have to be something _he_ did that failed. He hated seeing disappointment in people, especially Alice. Someone that young should never be unhappy; she hadn't seen nearly as many awful things in her nineteen year life as he had over the many, many years he had existed in Underland. He did not age normally-he had only shadows at the times he would reminisce on his childhood. It had been so long ago...In the same way, there existed only the occasional picture of the man Alice bespoke in his memory. Something told him that if this...Barabbas Thayer person could remember who the infamous Hatter was, that Tarrant should be able to do the same. But he couldn't, and all hope of figuring out how he was pervading the young lady's mind was proverbially crushed. By the next statement from Alice, however, his spirits were raised.

"I was able to resist."

"Oh! That's absolutely wonderful then!" And he clapped his hands contentedly. "Problem solved then!"

Alice shook her head sadly. "No, I'm afraid." Tarrant felt his face fall, labeling the declaration momentarily as somewhat of a killjoy. "I just need time to think...There has to be something I'm missing!"

"Yes, I'm sure there is, but we must get you back to the castle so that someone can get a look at your head and-"

Again, she shook her head resolutely. "I want to go on. You told me just the other day that this place that you're taking me has helped you think clearly in the past, and I decided long ago that I make my own path in this dream." She walked on, leaving Tarrant staring after her, thoroughly bewildered. After _everything_ she had been through, and after he had even had a conversation with her about it, she was _still_ under the impression that she was simply going to wake up. How...depressing.

Raising one hand with his index finger pointed emphatically at the sky, he hurried after her. "Um...Alice? I think now would be a good time to review a little discussion we had back before..." But he trailed off. Alice had stopped, for they had reached the puddle-filled path again. Looking immediately for Flight, distracted, Tarrant was perturbed to find that both horses were gone. Going past Alice, he began searching for traces, but finding none, he found himself stumped. Sinking down onto the rock they had both been sitting on an hour or so before, he put his chin on his hand and tried to think of something other than what his explanation to the White Queen would be. _"Yes, I lost your horses while I was trying to save Alice from an evil black bunny_, _your Majesty...She just...ran off-Alice I mean...I'm not sure where the horses are now."_ He recited in his head, making an effort to word it correctly in a way that would make him sound even fairly intelligent. "I don't suppose you could tame another Bandersnatch could you, Alice?" He asked, smiling slightly.

"How are we going to get back before nightfall?" Alice asked stiffly, ignoring his attempt at lightening the mood. "We can't stay out here after dark! We didn't even bring any weapons to defend ourselves!"

"I know! I know! Nobody panic!" Tarrant shouted, thinking quickly, and his voice took on the strange accent that made him seem all the more sharp. "Don't get yourself in a state, lass! We'll find these bloody, traitorous fiends and send 'em all on their way to-"

Alice interrupted him before he could finish, putting a hand on his arm like he had done to her only days earlier and shaking him gently. "Hatter, please..." His head snapped to her, and with his mouth hanging open, he suddenly looked very innocent. "It will be all right. We'll find a way back, but for now I want you to lead me to the place you were taking me." He went to protest. "I need you to do this. I will never be able to escape this man if I do not discover a way..."

Averting his gaze, Tarrant considered the odds of getting attacked by some wild creature on the way there. For a moment he went completely off track mentally, going to one of his most reflected subjects: things that began with the letter M, which was where he found his answer. "Maurice!" He said aloud, his eyes snapping wide open. Alice gave him another one of those looks that plainly said _you're completely mad_, but be paid it no heed. "Of course! Why did I not think of it before! Oh, I was off chasing after you, Alice! _Aha_!" He laughed maniacally; happily, and shot to his feet, grabbing Alice's hand and dragging her along behind him at a fast pace. "Come, come!" He urged enthusiastically. "We're off to see my friend-he lives very close, mind you."

"Who?" Alice spat out, struggling to keep up.

Tarrant was beaming, and practically skipping along the path. When he noticed that Alice was overexerting herself to stay with him, he spun around-still smiling broadly-and said aimlessly, "Have I ever told you how lovely you look covered in dirt?" It was a foolish thing to say, and even more pointless considering that he wasn't even in his right mind when he had conjured it up, but Alice burst out in giggles as her hand was released. He motioned for her to continue following him, and she did so in a seemingly improved mood. How he enjoyed making people happy, even if it was unintentional.

"Who are we going to see?" He heard her repeat from behind.

"Someone I've known for a long time; you'll see when we get there!"

Whether or not she accepted that answer, he didn't know, but in any case, she said nothing about it.

True to his word, Tarrant's acquaintance was not far, and it was only a short walk through the rest of the trees until the path leveled out and widened into a large area of nothingness. The ground was covered in short, purple-ish grass and small white flowers. Huge clouds in the bright blue sky cast moving shadows; strange insects of all shapes, colors, and kinds flew around. Despite all the scenic comeliness, he kept his eyes upward, hunting for something. Alice also watched the skies with him, but likely couldn't understand why he was doing so. Tarrant had slowed down, ambling along in no specific direction, his arms swinging merrily at his sides with Alice somewhere behind him. There _were_ clouds, but not so many as to completely obscure what lied beyond. Baffled, he found a spot and sat down into the purple grass, muttering to himself incoherently. He craned his neck back even further, scrutinizing what was above so carefully that he almost wouldn't have picked up on the fact that Alice was talking to him, should he not been expecting such.

"What are you doing?" She demanded, a bit irritated by that point.

Turning his head from left to right, he squinted his eyes, "I'm...yes, well, I'm looking for someone, you see...He should be around at any minute."

"And you're cloud gazing while you wait for him to just _show up_? How odd."

"Erm-no, I don't believe you understand..." But he didn't have time to explain. "Ah! He's coming now!"

An enormous silhouette appeared in a patch of blue surrounded by clouds. Alice flinched and stood up, looking like she was debating whether to run or stay put. Tarrant motioned for her to come stand by him, and she did, wringing her hands as she came. The silhouette had grown and darkened, descending towards the two at a slow but steady pace. It was soon apparent that it had a regular body, but lacked details and an expressive face. Its arms were long, and seemed to be longer than its legs, which were colossal in and of themselves. The closer it got, the more obvious it became that it wasn't human at all, but merely took the form of one. It was either made of stone, or some kind of durable wood. Its head, a oversized oval, twist around to reveal features that were so dulled that it looked entirely lifeless. The giant hovered twenty feet over both the onlookers, arms and legs splayed out to create yet another outlandishly big shadow on the field. It looked like a massive statue of a man, but instead of being fashioned by a master carver, it would have been made by a child. Tarrant felt a tap on his shoulder and responded. Alice was awestruck, but it was hard to tell if it was in a good way or a bad way. In effect, she really provided no emotional giveaway, but her eyes were wide enough to tell him that she had never seen something like his friend before in her life.

"Hello Maurice!" Tarrant greeted cheerfully. "This is _Alice_, the one who killed the Jabberwocky. You remember don't you? I told you a long time ago she was going to come back."

The utterly bizarre figure of Maurice shifted in the air, giving no clue as to what he was thinking. "Indeed...I recall the times we used to talk for hours, Tarrant Hightopp...Then you stopped coming all together." The voice was deep and rumbling, just as stately as it had always been.

Grinning nervously, Tarrant shrugged. "Not that I would not have visited you, but many things came up that needed my attention. Bear in mind that on our last visit I told you plainly that I would not be coming back for awhile-that I had matters to take care of."

"Like sitting at the head of that table, drinking tea all day long?"

"Now, please, Maurice! I haven't the time to argue, I need your help."

The statue thing came in closer, not ten feet from crushing them. "What have you gotten yourself into this time?"

Alice cut in. "Do you know a Barabbas Thayer?" Maurice pulled back.

"Make her stop talking! The voice of the female hurts my ears!"

"But you don't even have any ears!" Alice retorted, glaring at him. "I need your help, and all you want to do is complain about how the Hatter hasn't been able to pay you a visit because he had been helping in the fight against the Red Queen! And now there is someone _else_ who is trying to kill _me_!"

Tarrant's mouth twitched. He strove to prevent her from speaking any more, but was too late. Maurice rose higher and higher away, gigantic arms drifting up to his head. "No! Wait!" The man on the ground shouted, but it was no use. "We lost our horses and we can't get back! I'm not particularly fond of _dying_, Maurice!"

He stopped, on a slant in their direction, and lowered his handless arms. "I will send word. We are many in the skies, and the message will travel fast. And now I must ask you one last favor..." Tarrant listened intently. "If you ever come back here, do not bring this Alice girl. She is quite too impertinent for her own good." And he disappeared into the endless sea of blue once more.

Even then Alice could be heard mumbling, "I am not impertinent..."

000

With the promise that they would be assured a way back to Marmoreal, the Hatter lapsed into a more tranquil frame of mind, becoming more carefree and jovial, not easily perturbed and as charismatically delightful as he had been on the day of Alice's reappearance into Wonderland. All he would have needed was a tea cup and the scene would be perfect. They left Maurice's field promptly, trekking along the bordering forest, concealed in trees, and before long another, smaller path emerged out of nowhere. As she allowed him to lead her to their original destination, she listened unreservedly to his nonsensical songs about random objects-something he did in all his spare time no doubt, among other things. One she found particularly amusing entailed a ditty about fish, and how, if they could all fly, what a inexplicable world it would be. He was such a humorist when he was in such good moods...Persisting to humor her up until they arrived at what appeared to be the edge of a very sheer cliff.

Alice, amazed at the geographical proportions, was in for an even bigger surprise when she looked out past the drop off. On the other side, another cliff face, higher than the one she was on rose, blocking any views on what was past it. A row of large evergreens grew alongside one other, each symmetrical to its neighbor. The only way through, was a small cut in the rocks, accessed by a long, stone bridge that hung over a deathly fall. Alice found that there were no pillars to hold it up, and wondered if it was even stable enough to cross. Her head pounded, the pain from the wound on her temple pulsating through her. She dared not bother the Hatter, who was, at that moment, very involved in talking to himself quietly about..._something_.

"Why, yes, of course I know what could happen, you silly thing. I'm not completely blind!" He had said the last bit loud enough to make Alice look at him. He gazed back, vacant, but nonetheless in next to no time smiled without showing his teeth. "Nothing, nothing...just speaking to myself, that's all. Nothing to fear! Well then, are you ready to progress?"

"If you are asking me whether I plan to cross that unstable looking bridge, I have absolutely no intention of doing so." Alice crossed her arms doggedly to emphasize her point.

The Hatter approached her, not so happy looking anymore. "_This_ from the infamous Jabberwocky slayer?" He gave a small spasm, the all too familiar darkness creeping around his large eyes. "I never woulda thought that someone like _you_ would be scared to be crossin' a wee bridge! What's gotten inta' ya? Ya can't be so bloody jumpy all the time!" His face jerked forward as he spat the last part out, abruptly turning around and throwing up his arms in an outburst of annoyance.

"All right! I'll come!" She yelled out of her own desperation to restore his pleasant temperament.

His head snapping to look over his own shoulder, his face changeably shined. "Righty then! Let's go!" the Hatter went onto the bridge in a gait just under a sprint, but Alice, still quite unsure took her time and place every step carefully for fear of the bridge collapsing. Her friend was far ahead of her, nearly to the end when she stopped in the middle and dared to look down, trying hard to conquer her trepidation. She gasped, pleasantly stunned to find that instead of hundreds of feet between her and the ground, it was only about two feet, and underneath the bridge was a soft mossy looking carpet. Either the cliff was an illusion, or the thing she was seeing now was...she went with what she was seeing now. Hurrying as fast as the Hatter had been, she reached her destination at the other side safely, only to have her eyes completely covered by both the madman's hands. Making clear her objection, all she received in reply were his insane giggles.

She could tell that she had been guided through the small opening in the cliff wall, because the air was suddenly so much easier to breathe. A fresh scent overwhelmed her, and though she could not see, Alice automatically knew that the landscape in front of her must be breathtaking. In a few more paces, she was brought to a standstill, feeling a breeze catch in her hair. Try as she might, she hadn't been able to get any words out of the Hatter, who only answered in the occasional laugh or chuckle, but when she took one last attempt when she had been stopped, he finally reacted.

"And now, Alice Something Kingsley, I give thee...your answers."

And he pulled his hands away from her eyes.

The first thing that registered was that they were very high up, perched atop a considerably sizeable circle of rock, and below...a crystalline ocean extended farther than the horizon. It was no ordinary sea, in that great rock formations rose out of it as far as Alice could see. Large birds soured above, some landing on the nearest rise, their individual calls resounding all around. Mesmerized she looked to the Hatter, whose gaze was also transfixed on the picturesque view.

"This is where you come?" He nodded. "You really think it will clear my mind?" Alice sounded so hopeful she could hear it in her own voice. She had injected so much optimism into the sentence that he had no choice but to answer.

"Well...we'll just have to see, won't we?"

000

**Um...**_**Possible**_** fluff, along with guaranteed violence and mental conflict promised in the next chapter, but in order for you all to find out what becomes of their little adventure, you'll all have to review! Come now, I KNOW there are many of you reading this! Surely you can type out a simple comment telling me what you think! You're all amazing for reading this! **


	8. Chapter 7

**Disclaimer: I own only my OC's! If I owned the others...well, I'm not sure what would happen...it would probably include Johnny Depp though...(evil laugh). Bad, bad Nyhratak...). BP**

**Breathe a sigh of relief now my friends, for I have not abandoned all of you. My main story-as I like to refer to it as, though this one is just as important-has required some TLC, and I've only just had inspiration for my Joker story that's been on the 'back burner' since last January. And on top of that, I've been devastatingly busy with trips, friends, making pointless movies for youtube, SLEEP, and other random musings. There ya go. My explanation. Thanks to my four reviewers for the last chapters: Ashasmasher (as always), Kirby77DP77, Niphuria, and Rose Red Ladybug (who reviewed **_**twice**_** in the time it took me to update this sucker). YOU GUYS ARE SOOO OVERWHELMINGLY AWESOME! Thanks for waiting for me y'all! Now we see what comes of Alice and the Hatter's journey (bites fingernails furiously in anticipation). Ug. I'm not sure how it turned out. Leave me some nice, heartwarming reviews and tell me what you think, would you? 8)**

**PS: On a humorous note, I just noticed how well the band Queen and the Mad Hatter combine! I mean, seriously! Can't you just picture him dancing around to "Bohemian Rhapsody"...? Random in-the-moment thought. I is sorry; it's late at night, and I'm feeling a bit delirious...ONWARDS!**

**Chapter 7**

Soon after being bomb shelled with the beautiful sight before her, the Hatter showed Alice the way to a stone staircase that plunged interminably down onto a small strip of land below. The steps looked boundless; never-ending from where she was, but after being assured that they did, indeed, end instead of turning out to be some sick mirage or hallucination, she consented and followed him down them. It took much physical strength, surprisingly enough, because despite common misconceptions, the long flight of stairs was grueling and hard on Alice's legs. The wind blew this way and that, and the Hatter was forced to keep a hand on the brim of his top hat, lest it be swept away in a strong gust. Farther and farther downward the two progressed, the thought of finally having mental peace paramount in her mind. A few times, she lost herself, recalling in detail what had transpired only hours before in the middle of the forest. Thayer had outright admitted what he had wanted with her, though he could not slake his desires in a form less-than mortal. That, Alice was immeasurably thankful for, but she knew a authentic confrontation would have to come about eventually, no matter how long she put it off.

When she stepped down onto the sandy ground, Alice felt like she was in heaven. It was so nice to be rid of the steps at last. Smiling from ear to ear like the Cheshire Cat, she resisted the urge to do an spontaneous dance right there where she stood. The Hatter saw right through her, and shared her joy just as surely as the sun shone above them. Thrilled as always to see her happy, he beckoned her to follow him, traipsing through the sand with his shoes still on. Alice took the opportunity to unlace her boots and pull them off her pale feet. She carried them in one hand and hurried after her guide, feeling very free. She caught up with him when he became idle, staring out over the water from a more level viewpoint. He took one look down at her feet and burst into a bout of mad giggles, slowly sinking to the ground. Her mother would have had a fit if Alice had even been seen on a beach, but in a moment of insubordination, Alice joined the Hatter in sitting on the sand, placing her boots beside her. She ran her fingers over the coarse surface, filling her hand and letting the thousands of grains of sand slip out of her palm over and over. The gentle sounds of the waves rushing up onto the shore _did_ in fact calm her more than she supposed they would have, and through it all, she felt her friend's eyes upon her.

"This is nice," she said, unfazed by the sensation of being scrutinized so intently, "it's so cold on the beaches where I come from. And the weather is mostly disagreeable. Here it's just..." Alice could not find words to describe it. "Well, at least it doesn't rain." She put in when nothing would come to her.

Varying her statement with one of his own, the Hatter pointed out, "It most _certainly_ rains...sometimes. Queen Mirana said that such depressing weather has been delayed somehow this year..."

"How often do you come here?" Alice asked him.

"Often." And that was all she thought he would say, but then, "I like to look out over the water."

"You would do good in the world above in that case. There are many reasons to take to the seas up there; many good, honest careers...and many that are scandalous."

"Such as?" Now he sounded interested. "The...uh...said "_scandalous_" ones."

"Piracy is the first thing that comes to mind."

"_Piracy_? What _is_ that, exactly?"

"It's-well, another story for another time. I can't picture _you_ doing that anyway, if that is what you were thinking." The mere mental picture in and of itself was troubling: him harming people for selfish gain.

He gave another small smile. "No, no...Never would I partake in something that causes harm to others. Unless we are talking of war against those who would hurt my friends, then I have to say I'd do anything to assist them."

Alice studied his face when he spoke with as much absorption as he had given her. There was just something about him; something that was so much like herself but still so very different. Once more, she found herself remembering back to the night of the celebration, where she had been conflicted as to what he was to her. It hurt, wondering why she held herself back. Too much happened to her. The events that she had gone through were beginning to play with her head and ability to think correctly. Even though adequate suitors back home had been few and far between, that didn't necessarily mean that she was supposed to be attracted to someone who wasn't normal. She _couldn't_ be. Yet, there she was, sitting by his side like she had always been meant to be there. She had stayed for him. She had seen the need for her presence written on his face that day and acted accordingly. Alice was destined for him one way or another, no matter how long she denied it, and the day would come when she would have to do something about it...If anyone else had seen the two of them sitting there, they would have screamed at the girl for not advancing emotionally, but Alice knew better. There was no way she could allow herself to do that. How she hated differing points of view!

Sighing to herself, Alice tried to look optimistic. "Okay. What do I have to do to understand why all of this is happening?"

"Oh! It's quite simple! Close your eyes to begin with..."-she did so-"...now empty your mind of everything-"

"How am I ever supposed to do that!" cried Alice like a child, cutting him off.

Patient as always with her, the Hatter explained. "_Ahem_...Concentrate on one thing-it matters not what it is-and everything else will merely..._fall away_."

It was a hard feat. When one had a mind like Alice's, it was difficult to concentrate on one thing at a time for more than a few moments. Whatever the process was that she was to be put through would undoubtedly take more than a few moments, and she didn't know where to begin. But, nonetheless, she tried; she tried for the sake of all that was good and right in the world above and around her. It took a bit, but after some intense thought and focus, it actually started to work for her. It must have been the atmosphere of the location in which she sat, but everything _did_ go away, leaving nothing but a void. She heard the Hatter's voice drifting through her mental blockades, but it was so muffled she could not comprehend it. Slowly, things came into the picture-things that Alice could not explain. She knew not how they even appeared, nor how they shifted shapes so very often before her very eyes. She saw herself, standing there, staring blankly at the horizon, developing with every second. She would not blink. She would not miss what was about to be revealed to her.

Such came in the form of a cave entrance. Off to either side of her, strange silhouettes stood with the motionlessness of stone. Their eyes glowed red and their faces bore scars. Alice saw herself walking down the middle of the path they bordered; the air she breathed was oppressive. She entered the cave, and found herself atop a large set of stairs, not unlike to the ones she and the Hatter had only just traveled down. But in some ways as well, they were different, more sinister. The cave was dank, and somewhere water dripped ominously to the floor. She took in hand a torch from its holder on the wall, descending the stairs, watching herself in the process. The stairs were covered only by moss, and dampened. Alice feared she might fall, but still went on. She felt concealed all the same, like she would not be found. Watching herself, she wondered who exactly she was trying to hide from. She had to crouch to continue; the ceiling had grown suddenly too low. Forced down into a crawl, the earthy scent overwhelmed her as her face collided with the sloping stairs of rock. Alice's hands were scraped raw-and when she dared to raise her head, she was greeted by the terrible sensation of the ceiling against her forehead. No light graced her tired, exhausted eyes. She could not go on. Her strength was gone. And she did not even know why she was being shown what she was being shown. Her own blood flowed from the cuts on her hands like water through a porous rock.

"_Your anger hurts me...I am in your head, and all you once knew will soon be dead_..." It was _him_. Again. What could Alice honestly have expected though? She could not see him anywhere around herself, but his voice was there, just as plain as it had been before when he had lead her astray off away from her friend. "_Why do you hate me, Alice..._? _Why can you not bring yourself to give me what I want..._?"

Within the cold, wetness of the staircase, she cried. She wept like she had never cried before, or would ever cry again. Her arms cushioned her face, and the dizzy feeling of blood rushing to her head sent her down a mental path that she would not wander at any other place or time. And then Alice heard herself speak as she watched.

"That is why I'm here! Everything is falling apart! I want-I want things back to the way they were!" She sobbed. _How can I be so weak? _Alice thought, concentrating harder on the scene before her. "Everyone is dying! The White Queen was murdered, and the Hatter is fading right in front of my eyes! I just can't bear it anymore! I feel so...so _alone_!"

"_You are not alone, dear girl..._" The lilt came again. Once more she picked up on the telltale sense of musicality, mixed in with some kind of foreign accent. The presence came all around her; she could not make it go away, and she had no will to. "_You offer yourself so freely...How can you possibly be alone..._?" Such hypnotic words were almost enough to make the real Alice want to give in to whatever was happening, but she looked on, waiting for the next move. "_Finally the woman lowers herself to the level of the serpent...I can save them all...for a price...I know that is why you are here...You want to rescue them..._"

"Yes." Alice could barely hear her own voice.

"_Then you need only to persist in your efforts a moment longer, and the answer will find you..._"

Cold, bleeding and wet, she saw herself push herself up onto her arms; saw her fingers grip the edge of the step she lay on, and pull her body down onto the next one. She felt the determination in herself, and it registered fully what she was going to have to go through in the imminent times if the deterioration of Wonderland really began to take place. She couldn't avoid Thayer forever. There would come a day-if what she saw was true-when she would have to go to him to stop all of the despair that would be caused. And as she watched her future self struggle to escape the painful confines of the staircase, she knew it wouldn't be in the least easy. She would need some help, and since she was aware now of what would come about, she would tell the Hatter and make sure everything was clear before bad things started to happen. Having the will to see her friend, things flooded back into her brain sooner than she could see herself arrive at wherever she was headed. Her eyes opened, and Alice inhaled sharply, going through a sensation which made her think that her breathing had been restricted throughout the entire revelation.

How long had it been? Moments? Hours?

Turning fully to look at the Hatter, she saw, much to her amusement, that he had fallen asleep. He was facing her, laying on his side in the sand, not appearing to care about it. He looked positively hilarious in sleep, retaining an ingenuous manner about his face. With his large eyes closed, it added to the humor of the picture. And yet, still, there was something about him that Alice wished she would never have to leave. Besieged by complicated images of the future and present, and now stricken with the same intricate emotions she had underwent ahead of her immersion into the dark oblivion, she stared hard at her friend. Why wake him? He probably didn't get much sleep, what with the way he was, paired with everything that went on in his life. Alice's gaze roved over him, pausing when she saw he held something in his hand-one of the colorful pieces of paper he had tried to hide from her before. Intrigued, as was natural for her, Alice took the edge of the folded paper in two fingers and withdrew it from him, holding her breath. It wasn't like he would kill her or anything if he woke up, but it would be an awkward situation to explain if she was found embezzling something he presumably wouldn't want her to see. She managed to take it without any indication that he knew what she was doing, and once she had it resolutely in her grasp, she backed away a good few feet.

The paper, as she expected, was the home of another one of his poems. Alice found it unlikely that he could have written it in the environment in which they were in, but further inspection showed that it _was_ true. Off to the side, there was a detailed drawing of a small seashell, most likely at his feet, judging by how he had been sitting. But it was not the artwork that caught her attention. While that, itself was impressive, the few lines he had jotted down in a wavy script proved far more illuminating. Her breath actually caught in her throat when she reached the end; her heart rate quickened in surprise, exhilaration. As if she could not believe it, she forced her eyes to read it over and over, taking in the assertion like it would die away if she did not store it within the safe haven of her mind.

_My face if free but my eyes are masked,_

_Emotions come and go,_

_Unspoken words plague me,_

_How can I ever complete the task?_

_When I can never know,_

_It is something I wish, but something that will never be..._

In a way, he was directly stating that his feelings and hers-newly realized though they might have been-were mutual, if indeed he even _understood_ the concept?

Alice thought back to the day after she killed the Jabberwocky-the day that his sentimental words had unnerved her, the day that she refused to accept them. She wasn't sure anymore. The Mad Hatter was...well...he was quite the individual. He wasn't shallow, neither was he lacking in personality. When the circumstances required his immediate involvement, he was there in the blink of an eye, ready and willing to do anything to help out his friends or the White Queen. He had the innocence of a child for one side of him, and the furious temper of a devil for another. And on top of all of that, he made for a steadfast companion and comrade. All of the sudden she felt drawn to him by some invisible force. Underland? The ocean air? God? She had no idea, but her hand had extended, fingers reaching to touch the side of his peaceful face. What would his skin feel like? Her pulse pounded in her throat. She breathed through her mouth only once, afraid that the slightest sound might awaken him, and closed the distance between her fingertips and the sleeping madman.

She wasn't sure how he sensed the near-contact, but without warning, his green eyes shot open.

Alice gasped and pulled her arm back quicker than she deemed possible. He looked around wildly before his gaze centered on her, then slowly drifted down to the paper lying face up in the sand beside her. His features lit up with utter horror, mouth in an uncomfortably tight line. The Hatter reached for his formerly private work with a quivering, scarred hand, mimicking what Alice had just been about to do, but not on the same terms. It was time for raw embarrassment to dilute any traces of the strange magnetism she had felt for him. Her face was a bright shade of red, she could do nothing about it. He didn't take his vexed eyes off her, dragging the paper back to him through the coarse surface like the words on it were a disease. Rising to a sitting position, he ignored the grains of sand that clung to his back, obviously humiliated as well. Tearing his attention to the crumpled document in his hands, he ripped it in half, impassive, and then ripped the two halves in half. He repeated this process until all that was left of it were minute fragments. The Hatter then proceeded to cover them, clearing his throat uneasily.

Just as quickly, he smiled cordially. "Well, let us hear what you have determined, Alice!" There was something still awkward about the way he addressed her, but if he was trying to help the situation out, Alice wasn't complaining!

"I...uh..." She self-consciously twisted a lock of her hair around in two fingers, not making eye contact. "I saw what will happen in the future..."

"The _future_? How exciting!" The Hatter clapped his hands together a few times. "Do tell."

Alice finally summoned the courage to look at him. "Something is going to happen. Something terrible...And I fear if I don't bring about what was foretold, everything in Wonderland will die."

"You have yet to get to the "terrible" part, my young, quick-witted friend." He sang, oblivious to what she had just told him.

"Did you not hear what I said?" Irritation made her snap at him.

"Not a word, milady."

"If something is not done soon about Thayer, you are all going to DIE. You will simply cease to exist. You will fade away like a vapor!"

"That doesn't sound at all pleasant. I don't do good with the whole concept of-ah, _death_. Why, if I were to fade away, who would be around to make sure you stayed out of trouble, Alice?" The edge of his lips quirked, a product of his rare, _sane_ humor. "And so what are you planning on doing about this impending predicament? I'm _dying_ to know..."

His lame pun wasn't the only thing that made Alice feel at a loss for words. Whenever he had acted like a mentally stable human being in the past, she had ignored it, but when he did it then, she noticed it more, and appreciated it even better. "Well...That was where I hoped you would, that is if you're agreeable to the idea, help me."

000

"That is _it_, Barabbas!" shouted the Red Queen, shaking her fist heatedly. "You _always _do this! You _always_ go into these stupid trances when I'm _trying_ to talk to you! What is the matter with you?"Thayer regarded her long enough to give her a thoroughly annoyed look, then snapped his fingers loudly. Two of his minions entered at his command, and he swatted the queen out of his way en route to meet them. She, naturally didn't like the gesture one bit, and tromped after him, face crimson with displeasure. Ignoring her, Thayer stared down on the pair of creatures that had come to do his bidding.

"Young Miss Kingsleigh is near." He said, just above a whisper. It was so very hard to hear even himself speak with the nagging woman's voice penetrating his very ear drums, but he had to be patient with her. "Iracebeth, my dear," he articulated smoothly, turning away from the animals for the moment, "perhaps you would find more comfort in the rooms we prepared for you, instead of out here in this unflattering atmosphere..." His words were perfectly serpentine, as was the way his face was kept expressionless. Even the tyrannous mind of the Red Queen could not resist that kind of charisma. No one could, in most cases. She quieted, face returning to its natural white color. "Now, if you give me a moment alone with my domestics, I promise that the reward will be..._most substantial_." With his act at the peek of its effect, he smirked only faintly, his head angled downward so that his eyes flashed upward into a sinister, yet apt fixed stare. And with that, she bought it, and spinning on her heels, she left the room. Thayer clicked his tongue at her under his breath, returning his consideration to his minions.

"As I was saying...You'll find her on"-he pulled a map from the interior of his red overcoat, unrolled it, and referred to a specific location-"_this _beach, located in the cove near the borders of Doorsworth and Dobs. Get it right, kill Tarrant Hightopp, and make sure Alice is prevented from returning to Marmoreal, or do not even think of coming back to me with your sorry tails between your legs. They are unarmed, so that gives you _no_, _valid_, _excuses_." Thayer let the map snap back up into a roll. "Tell the largest and best fighters you have to go in a pack of fifteen, but not Lucifer, I have need for him here. Make haste. In the meantime, I have some less-then-pleasant business to take care of..." The last part was meant for him only to hear, for he said it in a mumble. The creatures took off to carry off his orders, while he went to deal with a very touchy evil queen.

000

The Hatter had listened good-naturedly to Alice's tale of woe. She left what she knew would happen once she confronted Thayer out-why tell him things she knew would distress him? When she was done, he frowned pensively, absentmindedly stroking his chin with two fingers and muttering nonsense to himself. Alice watched him without bothering to ask what he was doing, she had learned long back that it was better that way. She had just started to wonder when he would say something to her about all she'd told him, when he perked up, not so grim as before.

"Ha ha!" He crowed triumphantly, bolting to his feet with his arms waving wildly about. "I have just thought up a most wonderful idea!" The Hatter's face then fell blank, but his arms continued to swing at his sides.

Alice waited, but he said nothing. "What _is_ your idea, Hatter?"

"_Oh_!" Chortling in a shrill, bird-like sort of way, he soon regained equanimity. "My, my. I _am_ a bit off today, aren't I?" Alice supposed she was part of that reason. " Well, judging by what you've told me _ever_ so eloquently, the logical and over all reasonable action to take is to go see this fiendish man before the appointed time. When we are at last liberated from this _disgraceble_, _awflus _fallow land, then we shall avail ourselves of the Orraculum. I'm quite sure you're familiar with it?"

"Yes." replied Alice without delay. "Very much so."

"It will help you...I hope."

"Seeing as you're not fond of dying." She added for him.

The Hatter shrugged a little. "Granted, I have no keenness on such an end as you spoke, but...forthrightly, if I may say so, I would...well, I would very much miss your company if that were to be my fate and I think that if I help you I may be able to thwart that which would require my giving up the ghost and thus not seeing you again. That would make me very upset and that alone is especially harrowing." He had said everything so fast, that Alice only heard the confusing end part about his emotional state. He was certainly a man of words, she gave him that. He must have seen the look on her face, because he shrank back timidly, "Don't mind me, please."

Quietly laughing to herself at his antics, Alice happened to look past his shoulder, up the short beach.

She froze.

There was a large creature standing twenty feet away. It lowered its head, teeth bared and red eyes murderous. Its ears flattened, and its long legs pawed at the ground disturbingly, long claws creating gashes in the sand. Beginning to approach them, Alice looked back to the Hatter for a split second to gain his attention, then said, "There's...there's something coming, Tarrant."

She never had called him by his first name, so he reacted straight away, twisting around to see what had gotten Alice so perturbed. He saw the thing too, but by the time he took it in to the full visual extent, it was close enough to attack. The Hatter cursed loudly, and Alice wasn't sure whether to be offended or happy that he had even said anything at all. The monstrous creature wasn't interested in the young woman, and instead went strait for her friend. He dodged it as it leapt for him in a unmistakably feline way. Alice took the opportunity to pull on her boots as fast as she was able, lacing them up tightly. Without weapons on both their parts, they were quite helpless against the animal. At least there was only one, Alice thought, moving toward the Hatter's aggressor in an adrenaline rush. It was too fast to do anything about, and the victim of its wrath seemed to be dealing fairly well with it. She looked back to the long staircase they had traveled down, her eyes glanced over it all the way to the top, where she saw a sight so terrible, she amazed herself by not running right then and there.

Standing in a group on the circular platform above, were more of the creatures. There had to be a dozen of them, if not more. She saw them; they saw her. Like clockwork, they charged as one down the steps. Alice yelled a warning about them in a panic, going to the Hatter's side. Even this action was impossible-the monster blocked her every attempt. It stood to her shoulder, and up close, the scent of rotting flesh overcame her. Lowering itself into a crouch, it snarled and snapped for her leg with a mouth full of knife-sized teeth. The Hatter caught it in the side, right in the ribcage just before Alice could react. The thing was knocked off balance, and fell onto the sand with a muffled sound. All Alice had to do was point to the steps behind her. The large pack of animals was nearly to the base.

Sputtering, the Hatter growled, "Confound it _all_!" before he grabbed Alice's hand and ran. Alice didn't have to tell her feet twice to cooperate, and cast one last look at the single attacker still in the sand. It appeared to have a broken rib, judging by the way it was struggling to breathe. Seeing it writhe around sent a pang of pity through her, but the bigger head start they had the better. The other creatures were on the ground, they _had_ to be by the time Alice allowed herself to think of them again.

Dogs and cats were fast...and since they were somewhat like a mixture between both, they would be upon them in only a few-

A sudden harsh jerk from behind Alice dragged her to the ground and wrenched her hand from the Hatter's. She hit the sand hard, just barely getting her arms under her head in time. As soon as she had made impact, she flipped over. _Oh, of course this happens_! She yelled in her mind. The group of reinforcements was already right behind them, and one had taken hold of the back of her dress, heaving her backwards as all the others loped by her. It occurred to her that they didn't want to kill her at all...they were going for the Hatter! They must have belonged to Barabbas Thayer! That was the _only_ explanation, unless they were attracted to intense color. With this revelation, Alice thrashed around violently, tearing loose from the creature's strong jaws. To her feet without the unwanted hindrance, she shouted at it-"_This is it_!"-and then kicked it hard in the face with the full force of her booted foot. There was a crack, alerting Alice to the fact that it was a delicate being with a vulnerable bone structure. It backed off only a second, blood oozing from its mouth, but jumped at her like the previous one had jumped at her friend. She countered its lethal move with another fleet strike to the top of its back leg, sending it off track. Exultant, Alice saw her chance and spun around to monitor the Hatter's progress. It was heartrending. Every single one of the foes-with the exemption of the one that lied on the ground behind her, brittle bones with any luck shattered-surrounded him, going for him at every opportunity they received.

Without thinking of the potential cost, she acted out in his defense, kicking at them all as hard as she could, the only method she had at the current time. It would have been so much easier if she had possessed a sword! Her dress was torn in a lot of places, and her legs had mild scratches on them. Their bones snapped every time she hit one, but they still went on in most cases, unfazed. One unparticular gave her a tough time. At first, when it was given a severe hit at a front joint where the leg connected to the rest of the body, it looked like it was going to withdraw from its onslaught. That was a bad theory on her part, because as soon as Alice's back was turned as she dealt with another, a crushing weight was unexpectedly put on her back. She and the antagonist both tumbled down, the dog-thing pinning her facedown. The Hatter tried to help, but had bites on both legs, and was in what looked like great pain. He remained on his feet anyway, getting to Alice just in time. Like the rescuer he was, he successfully prevented it from taking a chunk out of her neck, but in a most peculiar way. When he first arrived on the scene, he found himself stumped on how he could get it off her. His legs hurt him badly, so he proceeded on instinct only, and grabbed one of the creature's ears. A lot of good that did! He tore it clean off, with no blood to speak of. On the other hand, it worked! Alice was released without any other problems than getting the wind knocked out of her. The animal, however, yelped and carried on.

The Hatter was somehow enclosed in a circle of those few who had evaded death or unconsciousness. Separated again from her injured friend, Alice faced the one-eared thing, ready for vengeance. It was droll when she thought it all over. Fighting was never something she was good at. It was never something she liked, either. The whole event with the Jabberwocky was a one time occurrence; she had convinced herself that nothing she was seeing was real, and had been able to slay the monster that way. Doing that again wouldn't work, she was sure of it. She disposed of the fiend the same way she had been divesting herself of all the other ones: a swift kick to the cranium. It was a good time to say something to the Hatter about the whole reason for their suffering.

"Hatter!" Alice screamed, and he looked at her at once. "This was a _trap_!"-she walloped another creature in the neck, not sure how she was still alive-"Thayer is behind it! He _knew_ where we were going! _He _sent these things!"

"Smart girl..." sneered a voice below. Alice's head jolted down. Movement stopped; sound went mute. There laid a thoroughly beaten and bloodied animal. _It_ was the one that had spoken. They could _talk_. It's forked tongue worked in its crushed maw to form the words. "You finally are beginning to understand...aren't you...? My master knows everything about you...and I mean _everything_..." Like the black rabbit before it, a nasty smirk spread over it. "You can't _run_ from him..." Its equals-which were few, since so many had fallen-had ceased their assault on the Hatter, and he limped near the leering thing with the dark circles bordering his eyes, striking the standing enemies on his way. They collapsed one by one, all adding to the small ring of corpses when he delivered the killing deed. "If he _wants_ you, he will most assuredly _get_ you..."

That was all he got in before an utterly furious Hatter brought his foot down in its skull. "Get _that_, ya nasty juggins..." With that said, he subsided, his victory short lived. Alice tried her best to catch him, but she wasn't strong enough, and only succeeded in slowing down his fall. His top hat slipped from its rightful place and landed on an angle, looking lonely without the wearer to fill it. He was bleeding even more profusely than when she had last checked, and his vivacious, green eyes had rolled back into his head. Scared, she placed her hand gently on his forehead-his skin was cold, indescribably so. Repositioning her hand at his throat, she felt for a pulse. There was one, but it had weakened from what she imagined it normally was. People couldn't die from leg injuries could they?

_No_! _That's unlikely_! But a voice inside her whispered another time. _They can die from blood loss though..._

Alice prayed that help would come soon.

000

**Whoo! Finally done chapter 7, I am! In case you're wondering, all the Mad Hatter's little poems are originals-stuff I write when I'm feeling rather mad myself. Hehe. In the next chapter...we find out what happens to the Hatter, while evil personified thickens the plot. Yay! And also, about the genre of this. Yes, there WILL be romance eventually, for those who are hoping. I'm just having a bit of trouble writing it for these particular characters. Patience my friends...soon...soon...Sorry in advance if it takes a long time to put up, but with school starting again and all, I might not have time, seeing as it's my first year of high school and all. *Gulps* Wish me luck! **


	9. Chapter 8

_**Disclaimer: Since these things are becoming more and more annoying every time I read them, I will simply ignore what is usually said in a disclaimer, relying solely on the fact that most people don't read disclaimers anyhow and automatically think I am saying something along the lines of normality...**_

_**I'm sooo sorry for the wait! School has been UTTER TORTURE! Suddenly, 'they' expect us to have no lives and do only homework to fill our time. What a drag...Oh how I wish I could find a rabbit hole and vanish into Wonderland like that lucky Alice!...either that or be taken away by a friendly alien race who don't believe in school or homework. Whatever works. 0_0 Anyway, thanks to my reviewers: ChillyRilly, Inbalwolf, ashasmasher (once more read her fic about emo people! It's awesome!) and Red Rose Ladybug (your review made me giggle :P I'm thankful I haven't attempted to do as you suggested either!). I hope you all enjoy this chapter; its a short one, but nicely straightforward. The next one will be longer.**_

_**Chapter 8**_

_Over a surprisingly short period of time, Alice was able to move the unconscious Hatter away from the carnage around them to the high rock wall beyond. She felt bad, for she had to drag him through the sand, creating an obvious trail of blood that anything with eyes could follow. Finding a place underneath the overhang of a particularly flat rock, she lowered her friend to the ground, wiping her brow with the back of her hand afterward. She watched him helplessly, eyes blurred with tears at his condition. There was nothing she could do until help arrived; there was no way of assisting him until they were rescued. She knelt down at his side, taking his cold hand in hers. Alice hoped with every fiber in her being that his fingers would tighten around her own, but her wishes were not granted. All she received in return was the sense of death radiating from him, or rather would have, if not for the fain pulse beating within his wrist. Powerless to help staunch the bleeding from his leg wounds, Alice curled up weakly beside the Hatter, her head on his chest. _

_"I should never have followed something that was not even real..." She muttered to herself, hoping that he would hear. "I'm sorry, Hatter...I'm so sorry..."_

_Her friend moved only just. That was all she needed to know that he had gotten the message._

_000_

_The White Queen was...flustered, to say the least. _

_When she had gotten the news of her Champion and Hatter's predicament from the entities in the sky, it was all she could do to remain calm. Nivens the white rabbit, on the other hand, nearly fainted a total of three times from stress, and his voice quivered tremendously whenever he tried to talk. Queen Mirana strove to pacify the poor creatures nerves, but her attempts failed severely. The other resident loons from Tarrant's mad trio took it better than anyone, if one could call Thackery Earwicket's periodic explosions of insanity on behalf of his friends and Mallymkun's threats against each and every individual in Marmoreal "taking it well". In any case, Mirana rushed as fast as she could to get a group of soldiers together. Who knew what trouble the lost pair had gotten themselves into by that point! She walked swiftly outdoors to meet a White Rook that was sent to obtain the plan from her._

"_Orders ma'am." It stated solemnly, lack of facial features disturbing the Queen. _

_She handed the soldier an unrolled map. "We shall follow this route here"-she traced a slender finger along a specified line drawn on the yellowed paper-"and when we reach our destination there we will find them. Dear Tarrant has often spoken to me about this place, and it is to my knowledge that it is where they were going originally." She kept her finger positioned on the picture of the coastline. "Now go, we must make haste."_

"_Yes, majesty." The Rook bowed its expressionless head quickly and turned to leave._

_Nivens McTwisp came and stood up on his hind legs beside her, his pink eyes darting around wildly. "Wh-when do we l-leave my Queen?" He stammered, shaking as he spoke. Mirana bent down and stroked the small animal on the head soothingly. _

"_Not to worry, we will soon find them, you will see." She reassured him. "You must stay behind, my friend, for your heart may not be able to take the journey."_

_The white rabbit became more jittery, "Majesty I must protest! May I remind you that it was I who located our Champion when you requested that I-"_

"_And you did a superb job, but I fear for you when you are out and about. You will stay here and will greet the lost ones when they are found."_

_At peace with his place, Nivens nodded slowly, "Yes, my Queen, I will be happy in doing so." _

_Mere moments later, the Queen's horse was lead out to her, and soon after, she lead the search party out into the unknown and across her kingdom's boundary lines. _

_000_

_Iracebeth, the infamous Red Queen, stepped through the doorway into the begrimed dungeons of Barabbas Thayer's decaying lair. The strange, animalistic guards stepped aside for her, quite grudgingly in fact. Iracebeth shot them a sharp, ice-cold glare but said nothing. The heels of her shoes clicked down the stone corridor at a faster pace than normal; her eyes were restless, scanning ever inch of her surroundings, for Thayer did not know she was here. The hostages inside the cramped little cells moaned and hissed at her as she walked by them, reaching their decrepit hands out through the bars. So this is what happened to all those who never returned to my sister_...She thought upon seeing the dozens and dozens of white, marble soldiers strew around the cages.

Down in the deepest, most hellish pit of the prison, there was a single cell, larger than the others, but in no less poor condition. It was empty, save for a small pile of straw, a ragged scrap of cloth that was probably a blanket at some point, and a very somber looking man. Iracebeth stood with her hands planted on her hips, surveying the state of the one who used to serve her loyally. The Knave of Hearts gazed out at her through his one eye, lifeless. He sat against the back wall, having the appearance of a peasant...no much lower than a peasant. The man was _dirt_. Iracebeth smirked and let out a derisive snort.

"So...here you are now _traitor_." She spat. "You had better be happy Stayne. If it were my decision, I would have your head by now."

Stayne canted his head to the side only just, eye half closing. "My Queen," he patronized blatantly, "are you here to mock me with your charming words or do you actually have something important to say...?"

"Silence!" shrieked the Red Queen, stomping her foot for about the millionth time since her arrival to Thayer's abode. "Guards, give me a key to open the Knave's cell!"

The two creatures who had followed her down exchanged looks with each other, before one spoke, "We cannot do that Majesty...our master would not approve..."

Iracebeth resisted the urge to explode, and instead put on her sweetest face. "Oh come now, surely you know that Barabbas sent me down here to...what's the term? "Check up" on our little friend here..." She gestured towards Stayne, still smiling.

"Don't listen to her." Stayne drawled from within his cell. "She is lying."

The guards' heads snapped towards him. "No one asked for your opinion." The one who had previously spoken snarled.

"So may I have the key?" Iracebeth's fakely sugary voice rose in pitch with every word.

Finally, the animal holding the key in its jaws released it to the floor, and the Red Queen snatched it up quicker than any of them saw coming. Keeping on her facade a moment longer, she walked lightly to the cell door, singing over her shoulder, "Please be a good pair of minions and leave us...Master's orders."

At the mention of their master, the two, only the least bit suspicious, scurried off away from the lone cell. Iracebeth waited until the scratching of their claws against the stone had diminished before she turned the key in the lock. Immediately her demeanor changed. She wrenched open the door and waltzed right in as if she owned the establishment. Dropping down swiftly to Stayne's level she stabbed a needle-like finger in his face.

"Now you listen to me Stayne. Do _not_ speak, just listen. Thayer has devised a plan to capture Alice"-and the Knave rolled his eyes as if to say 'oh, not again'-"and you are going to be part of it whether you like it or not."

She expected him to say something-give some sort of protest to the statement, but the word that came from his mouth were quite different than what she expected.

"And...?"

Iracebeth rose to her feet, infuriated. Stayne stood weakly as well. "Don't you know what this means?" He shook his head blankly. "Barabbas told me that you will be killed in the process of his plan! Does that mean nothing to you?"

He looked at the ground. "No. Nothing at all...Majesty."

The Red Queen reach up and placed her hand on his shoulder. "Well..." She said quietly. "It should." She slapped his full across the face, leaving small red lines where her nails had ripped at his pale skin. "It _should_!" She screamed at him. Stayne growled lowly under his breath. His own hand lashed out, wrapped around the smaller woman's throat, and swung her around hard into the nearest wall. Iracebeth grunted in pain when her head made impact with the hard stone surface. With his fingers securely cutting off the Queen's air supply, Stayne knew he had her attention.

"For years I have wanted to kill you, Iracebeth. _Years_..." She looked at the condition of his infected, empty eye socket, and how much fury he had towards her, and all at once realized how bad of a mistake she had made. "And now...I have...the chance..."

Iracebeth could stand it no longer. The ever increasing pressure on her windpipe bore down on her like a heavy weight, and she began to see black.

"Having fun?" A slurred tone came to her ears in what she thought would be her last moments. Both she and Stayne turned their heads to see Thayer leaning against the entrance to the cell, smiling. "And here I thought you were already mine, Majesty..." He chuckled. "Let her go Stayne."

The Knave did no lessen his grip.

Thayer took one step inside the cell. "Let her go Stayne." He repeated, eyes wicked.

Stayne stared back at him. Iracebeth tried desperately to pry his hands from her throat to no avail.

"I will tell you one more time: let Iracebeth go."

In the split second it took Stayne to defy Thayer's order, the Knave was suddenly on the ground, hands on his head writhing around in pain. All around her, the Red Queen heard whispery voices and felt a void so unfilled that even death itself could not compare. She looked about in terror, while Barabbas Thayer stood with his eyes closed in the middle of the caged area, mouth moving silently.

"What's happening?" Iracebeth cried, not able to stand still for fear of becoming like Stayne.

All at once, everything stopped. The atmosphere became peaceful again, and the Knave of Hearts lay on the filthy floor, unmoving.

Thayer beckoned for her to come, offering her his hand, which she took with care and quickly stepped around Stayne's body.

As they walked away from the cell, she asked more timidly than she ever had, "Is he dead, Barabbas?"

Thayer smiled a malicious smile, his sharp teeth gleaming ever so slightly in the diminutive light. "No, my dear. But after I am through with him...I can assure you he will wish to be."

000

Alice was in peace at last.

She had had no bad dreams, and awoke to the feeling of her friend's hand stroking her hair serenely. She smiled at this, happy beyond all reason to know that he was okay...and that his injuries were going to be tended too very soon. Alice shifted a little, she heard an exhale from the Hatter, and spoke, "You're all right...I was beginning to think that you were dying..."

"No Aliccceee..." He drew her name out, she felt all too relieved to hear his voice. "You, of all people must be aware that I cannot die..."

"You can't?"

"No, my dear, I have conquered immortality..."

There was something; something in his voice. His hand did not stop moving in her hair.

"How?" She barely whispered, and started to sit up to look at his face. "How have you-"

Rapidly, so much so that she did not have a chance to fight back, did he twist over and pin her firmly to the ground. There was nothing friendly or playful about it. It was not something the Hatter she knew would ever do. Her mind was shocked by the violent action, but when she looked up into the face of the one she thought to be the Hatter, her breath was driven from her. Her pleasant dreams were too good to be true. Thayer's nefarious face glared down at her. But...he had said himself that he could not touch her if he wasn't there in the flesh. He couldn't have come that quickly, and where was the Hatter? Alice knew that it must be a dream. But then why was it so real? It couldn't be...

"You are not real!" She screamed fighting the darkness that surrounded her being. "You are not here! This is only a _dream_! This is not _real_!"

Thayer laughed, a chilling sound that reverberated through her. He leaned down and hissed in her ear, "But I am, Alice...I most, certainly, _am_..."

Alice thrashed about, hoping to be rid herself of the monster. The worst part was, he did _nothing_. He didn't try to harm her in any way. He was just _there_, and that was enough to drive her over the edge.

"Alice!" She heard a female voice cry.

Still she struggled.

"Alice! Wake up Alice!"

The sensation of falling very fast hit her, and light blinded her. She saw a silhouette above her, and shrank back, horrified at who it might be. As everything became clear, Alice saw the White Queen's lovely face staring at her with such grave concern that it was almost unlike the ruler. The young woman also become conscious of the fact that the Hatter was still there, and her hand was still safely in his own unconscious one. It _had_ been another dream.

Alice jumped to her feet like a frightened child and threw her arms around the Queen, tears pouring down her visage. She did not care if it was improper. She did not care it if made her look like a coward. She did no care. All she wanted was the comfort of knowing that another life form cared about her.

And luckily for her, Queen Mirana truly did.

"Do not be troubled any longer, Alice..." She murmured, curling a delicate arm around the Champion. "You...and Tarrant, are safe now..."

000

**Well...kinda short, but at least I got it done! Hooray! So, please review for me and tell me what you think of where this is going, because with what I have in store for this after my main story is done...is probably the weirdest I've ever composed. Reviews make me smile!**


	10. Chapter 9

**Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. It's been a long time coming. I've had all these little ideas in my head for a long time and never got a chance to do anything about them. My focus has been prior to about a month ago, my main story, and finishing that monster up once and for all after four years of writing and re-writing. Alllllsssssooooo...I have started another original work that I have really wanted to hang on to, and am trying very hard to keep writing it, thus another excuse for no updates. I will still work on this though I promise! Oh a very special thanks to my reviewers: Ashasmasher, CupofTeaforAliceandHatter, Phoenixica24, and Red Rose Ladybug. I love you all like the siblings I don't have!...sorry getting a tad creepy there. XP I surely hope you enjoy this chapter. I wrote the first part at a before-Christmas party, to give you an idea of when I started this!**

**Chapter 9**

Barabbas Thayer had waited long enough.

For everything.

He had been putting off what he knew was coming, biding his time and waiting for the opportune moment to strike. But when he had, it had turned out disastrously and he had lost all the minions he had sent out. It was this that thoroughly convinced him to take matters into his own hands. He would no longer rely on his crooked companions alone, but rather he would have to go along with them; control them in person. He entered a place that he did not often venture with the intent of collecting his means of force, and a hazardous form it was at that.

He was going in person for young Alice.

And he was certain that no one would hinder him.

000

The trip back to Marmoreal was silent. There was not the celebrating that Alice had hoped there would be, but instead an endless void of bad feelings. Fear, sorrow and worry namely. She often found herself looking around, praying that she would not see any evil entities watching her...or malicious smiling black rabbits for that matter. Alice uttered no words, walking by the sides of a pair of white horses who bared her friend's unmoving body - she had refused to ride for the time being - without further attempt at interaction. The soldiers that had accompanied the queen to the off beach had formed a type of vertical platform atop the two animals on which the Hatter now laid on his back, secured.

Her mind was possessed by Barabbas Thayer. His darkness consumed her; all his intricate emotions made her whole body feel strangled with confusion. In her dream, his overpowering demonic lust had been too much. His teasing was a surreal hell that she could not escape. One day he would come for her. Not some apparition in her nightmares. Not a shape-shifting hallucination. No. When he appeared, he would be a real flesh and blood man, like he had been the horrendous night she had met him. He would claim her, and kill her along with her innocence. Underland would be the death of her - it had already begun.

"Alice?" The White Queen asked, riding side-saddle on her horse off to the left. Alice lifted her head, golden curls falling around her petite shoulders.

"Why are you so silent?"

Alice lowered her gaze once more. "I fear for my life, Majesty..."

The Queen looked puzzled. "Why Alice, why haven't you expressed these concerns before the present time?"

"I wasn't sure before, but now..." She trailed off. "I'm almost certain that people are out for my blood."

"Who are these villainous beings?"

"A man called Barabbas Thayer and his minions. They reside in the Outlands, and the leader himself is far more cunning then any Red Queen could ever be" - Alice paused for a slow breath - "He has...these..._ways_ of getting into my head. Convincing me of things that...that cannot be true."

The ruler's brow creased daintily, and she bent over just a bit, as if to get closer to the struggling girl. "How long has this been going on, Alice?"

Alice balled her hands into her dress at her sides, clenching her teeth together when a wave of anger washed over her. "Ever since the night of your celebration. He just...turned up in my quarters and told me things...yet...said nothing of importance and he...just disappeared after that like he had never been there!" She was close to shouting by the end, confused and frustrated; she wished she knew _more_ about him: who he was, where he originated from, what he planned on doing to her - though the latter one she had many colorful ideas on, despite the fact that such assumptions were utterly un-ladylike.

"My dear, you must not let this get the better of you...If there is a threat to you out there somewhere, we must see that you are properly taken care of. It pains me to see you suffering like this."

She tried to put her antagonism for Thayer aside and asked desperately, "Will he be all right?"

"Tarrant? Oh yes...I do believe so." The Queen had a hopeful look in her eye at the mention of the Hatter. "He is a very fast healer, and with the proper treatment I am certain that he will be..._right as rain _in a few days time." She smiled pleasantly, but Alice did that feel the warmth that radiated from the expression. She was far too preoccupied with other fears of what could potentially go wrong. "Keep your hope alive, Alice, we might soon see the sun yet!"

Right at that moment, Alice looked up and saw that the sun was already out.

The queer colloquialisms of the Underland people would be her distraction for a while.

000

A few days later, Tarrant Hightopp's eyes began to flutter, and with a muffled groan of protest when the unwelcoming light pervaded the small gap between his eyelids, he tried to remember what had happened. Yes, it all came flooding back to him then, memories that were very tangible when he thought hard enough about them. He recalled it, that was certain. He recalled the beach and the willingness he had held when it came to helping Alice receive some clarity. And he also recalled those hellish creatures who had tried to kill them, the property of the man who haunted his female friend so. His fingers moved painfully slowly, and he came to realize that he was alone in whatever room they had put him in. His legs felt rather funny; strange sensations traveled up and down them. This was, of course, because he had lost so much blood from them, and he was surprised that he had actually survived. It was not exactly a _bad_ feeling, per say. For instance, it didn't actually _hurt_, or anything of the sort.

"Thank you Alice Kingsleigh..." He gave his gratitude silently, though no one was there to be disturbed anyway.

He wondered to himself how long he had been in the pristine room by himself - how many days had passed without his presence in the awoken world? With great effort, he pushed himself in the bed he lay in and stretched his fingers, popping his pale knuckles in the process, as well as his back. Who knew how long he had been laying, almost dormant in that position. No one was there to tell him that he could not walk, so he simply swung his legs over, placing his feet firmly upon the white marble floor. Standing, it seemed like a new concept to him. _Oh my goodness gracious_...He thought moving one leg and then the other, _I must have been out an awfully long time for such a common thing to feel so bizarre_...

His top hat, a clean overcoat and shirt sat on an empty white dresser with a large mirror on it. One look at his appearance made him scrunch up his nose, for there was a large dent in the back of his hair. It was very comical in all actuality, but if he was to look presentable it would have to be sorted. With no grooming objects in sight, he fluffed at it with his hand, feeling oddly like a woman, which made him chuckle happily. And he had much to be happy about to! One: he was awake. Two: being awake meant he would see everyone again! Three: everyone meant mostly Alice. More contented still, he threw on the clean clothes, discarding whatever he had been wearing before on the floor and simply overlooking them as he tread out, still a bit insecure, but getting somewhere nonetheless.

The first of his friends that he encountered was Thackery, who had no reason at all yet every reason in the world to be aimlessly rambling about the castle talking in strange tones to himself. The March Hair literally fell over and spasmed when he laid eyes on Tarrant, probably thinking that he was some sort of ghost. When at last he contained himself - as much as he could - he stared long and hard at Tarrant and threw himself to the ground again, pulling his grungy ears over his bug-eyes and mumbling incoherent things in a variety of different pitches. The Hatter frowned, prodding the jittery animal in the back.

"Um...hello in there?" He asked timidly. "I will not eat you...if that is indeed what you have been implying?"

Thackery lifted one ear to peer at the colorful man. "Yih won't?" His mouth hung open a bit, and then he clacked his front teeth together. "Oh...well that's a right relief!" And he bounded straight into the nearest wall, his body a blur. With each word he said he crashed into the flat surface. "This. Wall. Needs. Some. Bloody. Wallpaper!" He laughed as well, and Tarrant could only cringe and let nature take its course. Thackery would stop eventually and calm down, but the persistent little bugger was not one to force reason upon...but "reason" was something Tarrant struggled with comprehending also.

"Where is Alice?" tried Tarrant, speaking up over the hare's yowling.

He stopped. "Aliiice? Wee thing is out in the garden I think...where there are lots of delicious chrysanthemums..." His last note was ended with a blissful sigh, spacing out. "I do love eatin' them."

Figuratively brushing him off like an insect, Tarrant was on his way, and Thackery yapped on behind him, most likely unaware that he had even walked off. He knew he should find her Highness first before anything, but Alice was the only thing on his mind. He needed to make sure that she was still alright. Who knew what could have happened to her within whatever period of time he was away from the real world. He went down a winding staircase as fast as he could under the circumstances, and as he neared the exit that lead into the garden, an indescribable joy filled his being. He would be able to see her smiling face again, and that would make everything else seem so trivial...at least for a few blessed moments. His pace quickened, and his mind was unnaturally clear for once, focused on what lay ahead. He felt all to normal, despite his mad reputation, and it was quite an unusual consciousness.

He reached the marble archway that separated him from his friend, and crossed over it without a single second thought.

That...was a bad mistake.

He saw just a glimpse of her golden hair, before a hand shot out of nowhere and grabbed him roughly by the collar.

Choked by the sudden drag he experienced, Tarrant struggled not to call out as he was pulled face to face to a man with black hair and a black top hat. The dark eyes stared back at his bright green ones, and he felt the undeniable evil wash over him.

He was looking at Barabbas Thayer.

The man was there in the flesh, justified by the tug at the material around his neck.

He was pulled back around behind the arched doorway, and was made to stay there.

Tarrant opened his mouth to yell.

"I would not do that if I were you, Tarrant Hightopp..." The voice was deathly quiet. "There is no point wasting your breath, for we cannot be heard at all..." A few seconds passed as Thayer waited for the Hatter to calm himself. "Now, I want you to do me the honor of looking over" - he pulled Tarrant out to stand in the threshold, scanning the area for a moment until he found what he seemingly was looking for - "there." A sharp-nailed, bone thin index finger was pointed over to the right of where Alice had been.

Tarrant looked, although he truly dreaded knowing what was there, and saw something terrible. The ground on the spot he watched was moving - cracking and crumbling as a form slowly emerged from under it. A large figure clawed away the earth around it, silent as the grave, and pushed itself up onto the stable surface on huge arms. Concealed within the white rose bushes, it could not be seen crouched down on all fours, but clearly bipedal. It had a face sheathed in a crude cloth with black circles for eyes and a stitched mouth. It's body was obsidian colored, appearing rough, and was built for agility. The most frightening part was, that in its hand, it held a long dagger, pressed to the ground like it would to a victim's neck.

"Take a good, long look at that Tarrant...And tell me: would you really want it to kill precious Alice if you made a...ahem...scene, hmm? Would you really want it to slay the girl in cold blood?"

Tarrant's eyes widened in horror and he hissed. "No! You - you can't!"

"I can assure you that I do not wish to, but having no other option presents us with a problem now doesn't it, my good man?" Thayer regarded him with a cruel smirk. "So I take it you will not be a hindrance then, for the time being?"

"And if I am? What then?"

"Now, now, I just told you!"

He pried the hand from his collar. "I know you would not kill her until you have thoroughly broken her...I know what you want to do, and you will not be satisfied until you do it." Tarrant could feel the other side of his personality taking over his actions, and knew that, judging by the raise of the eyebrow Thayer provided, the skin around his eyes had reverted to a much darker shade, his irises turning as black and empty as the detestable man before him. "You will take her. Abuse her. Do contemptible things to her innocent soul?" The sudden Scottish accent made Thayer's smirk all the wider.

"No, no...I would never hurt her, it is something reserved for the scum of this land, which I am far above."

"Says you."

"You have my word..."

"Your word means bloody nothing!"

His voice was raised as he said it, and the other man immediately swung him around with little trouble and slammed his back against the wall. He grunted upon impact and struggled not to choke the life out of Thayer in a fit of madness. But he knew even through the fog of lunacy clouding his reasoning that he could never triumph. Not in these circumstances. A hand was clamped over his mouth for an instant.

"Not another word...or you will die." Thayer went again to the archway and gave one small flick of the fingers at the humanoid hidden within the bushes. It instantly sprung up from its hiding place and latched a hold of Alice. She shouted and kicked at the attacker, but it was not shaken, and quieted her with the contact of the dagger against her throat.

Thayer looked to Tarrant. "If you try anything...I'm afraid my work will be broken." - revulsion flickered across the Hatter's face, which gradually relapsed back to its normal, colorful hues - "Yes. I think you know what that means." Thayer tipped his hat mockingly.

He could do nothing but watch as the evil man went towards the female and minion. As soon as Alice saw Thayer, she froze in panic.

"Why hello..." He took a lock of her hair in his gloved fingers like he had known her forever. "It has been awhile hasn't it? I'm sure you remember when we last met...do you not?"

Nothing.

She said nothing.

"No reply to that? What a shame." He dropped his hand and his head shot to his slave. "Let us be off. We have no time for any more..._delays_."

As they moved out, Alice looked behind her, and saw a very confused and solemn Hatter standing out a few feet from the doorway, his face contorted painfully. He was doing nothing to save her - just being still as she was taken farther and farther away from him. She could barely hear herself as she threw out one arm and screamed for him to help, but he seemed not to perceive sound, dazed in a queer way that she had never seen him in before.

It was when she saw this that she gave up, losing the will to fight back, and going limp in the minion's hold.

**So? What'd ya think of that one? If anyone has any suggestions of what I should do next, feel free to say so and I will try my best to incorporate them into the grand scheme of things! Once more I must apologize profusely** **for the many-month wait for this, but I sincerely hope that you will still take the time to read and review!**

**Thanks ~ Nyhratak**


	11. Chapter 10

**I don't suppose I can rightly say I didn't see this coming...After all, I did let you all down for many a month. On that note, my only reviewer and good chum: Ashasmasher, has my sincere thanks for taking the time to read this. As for the other 600+ of you that provided hits for this work...**_**grrr**_** to you. Please oh please oh please review! I really love it when ya take the time to do so...**

**Chapter 10**

It was in the darkest of times that Alice Kingsleigh had always relied on her friends to get her through and bring comfort to her when all else had otherwise become hell. They had assisted her in all her undertakings in the past, and no less was expected now, as she was brought into an ominous room down a long flight of rough stone stairs. But they weren't. Her face, marred by the tear stains that her dearest friend's desertion had brought upon her, proved the severity of her plight. She had not struggled the whole journey, even when she was forced up on the back of a black, filthy horse on her stomach, much to her kidnapper's sick resentment. She did not cry from the physical pain that was brought to her by the fierce, persistent contact that her head made with the animal's powerful flank throughout that excursion; the emotional scarring alone made her oblivious. And finally, she did nothing when Barabbas Thayer's minion dropped her brusquely onto the floor of the room at the bottom of the stairs, her body crumpling there in a pile of limns like a rag doll.

"Be more careful with her!" Thayer hissed at his slave, who recoiled only just and slunk off into a side tunnel, which was as dark as a moonless night. He then turned to Alice, and offered somewhat of an apologetic expression. "I'm dreadfully sorry my dear, I truly am. I have not meant to bring so much harm to you on this expedition, and after your friend Tarrant betrayed you like that..."

Alice's head snapped to attention like she had been slapped. "He did not betray me." She said through clenched teeth. "He had to stay. You _made_ him!"

Thayer chuckled. "Is that what you've been doing this whole time? _Rationalizing_ things? I knew there must be a reason why you were so silent..."

"Do not speak to me like that!" She found the strength to stand. "Who are you to treat me like I am no one? Who are you to act as if I am just another silly child?"

His mouth formed a straight, taut line. "Touché," he said without any sort of look in particular. "Well, young Alice Kingsleigh, I suppose this is the point in time where I assure you that I will not do anything disgraceful to you without your consent, not in the present time at least...You need not fear what undoubtedly plagues your mind. You have my word."

Still using a sharp tone, Alice demanded, "Then why have you brought me here? What do you want with me?"

"Do you wish to know the disgraceful things or those of the morally correct persuasion?"

"You already know the answer I think..."

He seemed to contemplate the statement for a moment, before he said very humanely, "Follow me, Alice, I want you to see something..."

She hesitated when he went beyond an ornate doorway, not being able to see what lay inside, but she soon followed after him. Alice hid her emotions well then, but when he was not looking, her knees shook with weakness, and nausea threatened to come about. Inside was a surprise. The room was elaborate, and there were many pictures on the high walls, made with white paint that seemed to glow in the partial gloom. She stood there admiring them, and from across the expanse, she heard Thayer's voice say malevolently, "You like them? I had them painted for you..."

She flinched, and her eyes landed on a large slab of stone in the center of the room in that second. Images rushed through her mind - images of her nightmares. In them, there had been a room, a room very much like this one, and in the middle of that room there had always been some sort of raised stone surface...like the one before her. The room was meant for you. He had been planning this day for a very long time. It made sense now. All her dreams and nightmares. All the bizarre things she had seen and felt and witnessed. All of the times when her friends could not save her. They were all a product of some sense of foreshadowing that she possessed, or that had been given to her. She went back to the night of the celebration at Marmoreal, and recalled the small ghostly girl at the fountain. Some of the pictures on the walls portrayed a small girl, and next to her, a cat. The looked so innocent, yet why would they be in a place of such utter darkness then? There were so many questions that needed to be answered, and so many things that needed to be unearthed. She knew he would not give any information however, because he was the one who had wanted her to come her, and he was not the type to be overly divulging.

"Well if it isn't that perfectly wretched little beast." A female tone came, sour to the very end. It could only belong to one person, a person that Alice thought had been put away for good.

Alice looked over her shoulder to see that Red Queen, big head and all silhouetted in the doorway. Thayer smiled from his place on the other side of the area, pulling a pocket watch out of his red overcoat and studying it. "Ah, I see you made it just on time. Please do feel free to join us..."

The woman stalked around Alice, avoiding her like she was some sort of insect that needed to be exterminated. "Are we going to get on with it then? I do not have all day, Barabbas!"

Yes, she was still as boisterous as ever.

"Now, now, Iracebeth...Poor Miss Kingsleigh knows not why she is here or what we plan on doing with her yet..."

"Well then _tell_ the blithering imbecilic toad! _Tell her now_!"

"Tell me _what_?"

Thayer rolled his neck and cracked his fingers, beginning in an obviously patronizing tone. "Erm...well my dear, ever since the day you came to Underland, I have been watching you, much to my ever increasing privilege of course." - the Red Queen let out a theatrical sigh of annoyance, but held her tongue - "And over this period of time, I started to think to myself 'the things I could accomplish if I had that lovely young lady in my grasp'." He paused, just as dramatically as the other woman in the room had. "Naturally I pursued you often, and after I made myself known to you on the night of the celebration at Iracebeth's sister's castle, I knew that I must put forth more of a...shall we say _effort_? I deeply apologize if I have frightened you in the past, Alice, but I must inform you that it was completely necessary for the furtherance of my will."

"And what exactly _is_ your will, Mr. Thayer, though such formal terms jar you."

The Red Queen crowed, high-pitched and sardonic from where she stood beside Thayer. "You cannot truly be taking such lip from one who is no more than a silly, stupid girl..."

Alice's head shot to her at the remark. "I have about had enough of you. I killed your monster and I could just as easily do the same to you. Queen Mirana is not here to stop me this time."

"No, she is not, you are correct, Alice," Thayer interjected smoothly, "but I most certainly am, and you will not lay a hand on Iracebeth. She is mine to deal with. I sent for her and the Knave with her." He smirked cruelly. "And he would very much like to see you..."

On cue, the Red Queen shrieked at the top of her lungs: "STAYNE! GET YOUR FILTHY CARCASS IN HERE AT ONCE!"

A rather hunched over, beaten looking figure made its way onto the premises accompanied by two of the doglike creatures, and Alice could not tell it was the Knave of Hearts until he lifted his head, covered by a curtain of scraggly black hair. He was not the man he used to be, not the commander that she remembered walking the halls of Crims. Now, seeing him, she felt pangs of pity as opposed to the fear he used to strike in her heart. This was a man broken. A man without an ally in the world, His betrayal of his queen had wrought an inescapable life of torture for him. He even lacked the heart-shaped eye patch that hid his repugnant deformity, festered and more gruesome still from time without care. He smiled a grim smile, not in the least containing any foul intentions as it once had.

"Has he raped you yet, Alice?" He asked snidely, casting a glare at the two other people in the room. Thayer groaned and snapped his fingers, causing the pair of beasts to each swipe his battered legs. Stayne fell to his knees on the flat stone floor, and there he stayed, courtesy of his guards, without a sound. The Red Queen seemed to have found amusement in his comment, and snorted to herself in a very undisguised manner.

Thayer's face was solemn. "Forgive him, he knows not what he says these days I'm afraid..."

But it was too late, the seed of dread had been re-sown into her mind, and this time, Alice knew it wouldn't leave. "Where is the Hatter?"

It was his turn to laugh. "You call him _that_? I thought you two were much more close to be on such terms with one another." Alice grimaced. "He is back at Marmoreal I would imagine...where he _ought_ to be. Did you think he would be here? I think not. After out little deal-"

"_What_ deal?"

"His betrayal was brought on by myself of course. I told him that if I could not have you I would take his life from him, and logically he picked the option in which he would stay breathing."

"He _wouldn't_!"

"He did."

"You are lying!" Her finger pointed accusingly at him, and the Red Queen grew more impatient still.

"Barabbas! Would you hurry it up! I haven't got all day to be standing here listening to you two verbally spar!" She yelled in his face. He didn't so much as flinch.

"Right then." He muttered to himself, concealing his sudden anticipation quite well. "Iracebeth, if you would be so kind as to..." He finished with an animated movement of his fingers, and she understood straight away.

She shouted at the same timbre she had for Stayne - still on the floor but alert - and from many tunnels that Alice only then noticed were there, came hordes of small, two-legged creatures. They were gray, with short legs and long arms. They had positively enormous ears sticking out of the sides of their heads, and on top of their craniums there was a single tuft of fuzz, making them appear seemingly innocent. There had to be dozens of them filling the space at once, and they were all coming at her. Panicking, she went to make a futile run for it despite their exterior facade, but out of nowhere, Thayer was blocking her path, opposite of where he had just been, he grasped her shoulder and shook his head. All traces of the geniality she had hoped had taken over him were gone, and the face that haunted her nightmares was back as he held her there. She felt something at her ankle, and looked down to see one of the entities wrapping its little hands around it. Kicking at it, she successfully made it drawl back, but a second later, it had bared a row of sharp fangs and lunged at her leg. Alice slammed into Thayer, whom she had forgotten was standing there in a stage of only about an instant, who backed away from her as all of the little things started to close in. He was going to be no help...not that he ever was anyway.

They climbed up her legs and arms when they got to her, weighing her down onto the floor one by one until she was splayed out against her will. She whimpered as their fangs grazed her skin, never breaking but sickly teasing, as if by order of Thayer himself. She was able to turn her head from side to side, and she saw that another cluster of them were coming towards her, carrying something.

A red dress.

The red dress that she remembered from her terrifying dream.

She could do nothing when the things started to shred her current dress with their claws and fangs. They left the white slip on her, making her discover that they were actually exceptionally meticulous in their work, but that did not mean that she didn't feel exposed, after all, the material was _very _thin, not meant to be worn by itself. Without consent, though no one really asked for such things anymore from her, she was hoisted up by the creatures and they by some means donned her with the strange dress. It was sleeveless, something she had never before seen in her life, and it felt uncomfortable around her mid-section. Once it had been secured on her, the fastenings of her undergarment were ripped from her shoulders and removed swiftly, leaving her with the dress and her boots. It was then that they dropped her and dispersed, leaving only her changed outward appearance in their wake.

Alice lay on the floor, dumbfounded by what had just happened. Her previous attire was in pitiable shreds around her, and her shoulders were much too exposed for ease to be found. She could feel all the eyes in the space on her, and the distress it caused her was almost too much to bear. A hand was offered to her, and she took it, knowing who it belonged to. Thayer surveyed her with unhindered attentiveness, ravaging her body with his eyes. Her hand still trapped in his, he shortly lead her over to the table in the middle of the room, gesturing for her to sit on it. She did, but not happily. Thayer left her there and went on to whisper something to the Red Queen, who left. The two minions urged Stayne to his feet, and although he resisted, he too was herded out without being aloud to get a word in edgewise. This made Alice all the more nervous, now that she was alone with the monster again.

He returned to her, smiling wickedly. "Now that they are gone...I will ask that you please subside upon the surface." Her face twisted with horror at the request. "It is _not_ a suggestion." Thayer retorted, using both hands to flip her onto the center of the table and force her down by her neck. She decided that it would be in her best interest to do as he told her to. "That's better." He said to her when he was satisfied with his work. "You know Alice...I was beginning to think that you had warmed up to me. That you would make this easy for me to accomplish, but I can see now that I will have to be a bit..." - he shoved her arm down hard onto the solid rock when she raised it only just - "..._rough_."

Stayne's words still rang through her head. Thoughts of terrible actions tortured her slowly.

Thayer paced back and forth, and she noted that he had no cane with him, oddly enough. "You must be wondering how I even learned about you, my dear...I know you are. I know many things about you, in fact, that precious Tarrant Hightopp does not. For instance...I know that your father's name was Charles, and he is dead, a _pity_ indeed. I know that you were to be married to the son of a wealthy couple by the name of the Ascots, who went behind your back with your mother to arrange this without your assent...also a great _pity_. And I know that most of all, you have many suppressed emotions for your lunatic of a friend, and you will not even admit them to yourself...which, by far, is the _greatest_. _Pity_. _Of_, _All_." The emphasis he put on each word hurt; the mockery just as much, for deep down, Alice knew the last part of what he said was all too true. Much too true...

"How do you - " She went to ask, but was silenced by a finger on her lips.

"Sh, sh, sh." Thayer silenced in a tsking sort of way, face hovering over hers, one arm braced on the other side of her torso, with disquieting eyes burning. "I'm afraid I cannot say...for your world needs not to be destroyed yet." He brought all of this across in a dangerous whisper, snapping back and taking out his pocket watch once more. Clutching it in his palm, turned out so that Alice could see it, he held it above her face. The steady ticking met her ears. "You see this watch? Surely you do...This watch is _special_. It is like no other in Underland, for there are none to be found here at all anyway."

"I don't - "

"Now listen carefully or this shall be most excruciating, I can promise you...This watch is the present, past and future all at the same time, and I have a bit of a surprise waiting for you with it. You see, I have discovered, over my countless years of existence, that, with the right mindset, time travel can be achieved. And that is what I am about to do to you. Alice Kingsleigh...I am about to lock you away in the Underland of the future, and here you shall stay while your soul possesses that world. You will never be a nuisance again, and I can hunt down and wipe out the rest of your companions..."

Alice was speechless, not understanding his point in everything he had just told her at all.

"What would you ever have to gain by doing that?" She cried at last, "Why? Why are you doing this?" She tried to sit up, but he would not let her.

"I have my..._reasons_. The perfect world is not achieved by sitting back and letting 'nature take its course', and I intend to make Underland into a world of the darkest imaginations. When I have completed my work, I will perhaps wake you, maybe even allow you to return home..."

"But this place...this world will be ruined! My friends will be dead!"

"That is no concern of mine, my dear. I only want what is best for everyone, and death is sometimes in that requirement. Never fear however...Tarrant Hightopp will most assuredly be last. I do hope that makes you feel better."

And with his hands still holding her down, he brought his mouth down on her own and kissed her violently, sharp teeth ripping her delicate lips to shreds. Alice fought and fought, but she was restrained, and could do nothing. It was the most horrible thing she had experienced, but she knew more terrible things were to come, if everything went according to the madman's plans. When he had thoroughly satisfied himself, and the blood from her mouth had stained her chin crimson, he smirked at her, pieces of flesh stuck animalistically in his teeth, he raised the watch in his hand and held it above her line of vision again, so it was the only thing she could see.

She saw his long-nailed thumb press in a button on the top, and the hands on the face began to spin.

That was the last thing she saw in the present world.

**Welll...? Did ya like it? I think I made it dark enough, but I need your helpful feedback to make sure of that. The next chapter...you will see where she has gone to, or rather her "soul". It is strange, I know, but it will get good, and some long due romance will be added to the mix soon enough, I promise!**


	12. Chapter 11

**Well howdy! I gotta say you people are amazing for reviewing! So quickly, a special thanks to: Niphuria, CupofTeaforAliceandHatter, Saissister, gizeliganzellebutterfly, and Rosethorn. You guys are the best ever! Now that we have gotten that taken care of, I present to you: the eleventh installment of thee story! I apologize ahead of time for the lack of certain lovable Hatters in this chapter, but the next one will have a lot of him I promise! **

**Chapter 11**

Something tickled Alice's nose as she awoke. For a blessed moment, she thought that she might very well be back in her bed at Marmoreal; back in the light that greeted her like they had been separated forever. She stretched out her thin fingers, and froze at the texture that met them. Slowly, she dragged the tips of her digits through the carpet of powdery dust, identifying it as the culprit for making her nose itch. When she opened her eyes, she noticed that it was gray...gray and colorless like the skin of the dead, and the more she looked at it, the more she came to realize: it _was_ dead, or was rather composed of dead things. She sat up, her back covered in the substance and scrutinized what lay around her.

She was in a sea of ash.

Everything was monochrome and burned. There had been a fire and no life had grown or migrated back. The black skeletons of the trees that had once populated the area stuck out of the ground in sharp spikes, seemingly raising themselves to the heavens for a rebirth they would never receive. Nothing was ever coming back - nothing would want to.

Shakily, Alice got to her feet, ankle deep in ash, and surveyed the land around where she was. In the distance, great mountains were silhouetted upon the dark, choked horizon, the mountains that she had seen from many places numerous times before.

This was Underland.

A very sad, dead version of it.

She wondered how long it had taken to put such a beautiful world to so much ruin.

Taking a moment to get her bearings, she tried to come to some sense of direction. It was next to impossible to tell where she was with what seemed like miles of destroyed land surrounding her. And the mountains, which _should_ have helped, didn't. With a forlorn sigh, she smoothed her hands down the front of her dress, an attempt to be rid herself of the ash that was very much in vain. She then noticed the blood red color of the material - the way the dust covered it no matter what.

How was this possible?

Was all of this only in her mind?

It certainly looked and felt real, for she hadn't really stopped to think about it before then, being distracted with the devastation that she was in the middle of. If all of this was real...

...then where was Thayer?

Had he come into this place of condemnation with her? Was all he told her would come about a reality now? How long had it been? She lost her conception of time. There was no sun in the sky to make everything clear. Alice understand that she could have been laying there for day, a proverbial living carcass, untouched by scavengers, thankfully enough. Outwardly, she was in one piece, and for this she was grateful. There were no scars to suggest all that had just happened. She raised an ash-covered hand to her mouth, healed suddenly as if by magic. With these things in mind, she went to take a step forward...

...and heard a terrible sound.

It was like jagged metal scraping across a rock, grating and ear-piercing, and it came from close behind.

No one needed to be there to tell her to run before it detected that she was in its territory.

The dress was confining, falling almost all the way to the ground, causing her to stumble or fall no matter what manner she ran in. She perceived the resonance of heavy footfalls behind her, pounding swiftly through the snowlike covering of ash. It had caught wind of her scent and was coming for her. Her mind screamed, _Bandersnatch_, but did they exist out in the wild? Was this even such? Judging by the course of the mountains, it _had_ to be somewhere in the Outlands, maybe even further. Therefore, her pursuer could have been literally _anything_. Her muscles began to fail her, and she knew that she would not keep the gait that was assuring for the time being that she would not be maimed in any way by whatever quadruped was following her. Lord above, her dress was slowing her down significantly. She could have gone on much longer if her legs had not been so restricted in their movements. She strained herself, just needing to fine shelter and -

A shrouded figure appeared in front of her. In its hand it held a crudely constructed spear of sorts and she automatically went towards it, not stopping even once to think that it wasn't the brightest idea. Imagine her surprise when she was completely flipped up into the air. The person had thrust out the spear in front of her feet, tripping her up violently, and she landed unnecessarily hard onto her back. Covered in ashes from head to toe, she watched through the haze that had been brought about by the impact as the figure whipped around and faced the charging beast that was coming at them.

"Come on..." She heard them mutter quite vehemently as the foe completed the last few meters. They jumped up high and a bull-like animal filled the space they had just been occupying. The slammed the point of the spear down into the neck. A sickening crunch came from where the bones were separated, and it landed in the ashes not a foot away from where she lay with a great crash. Gray powder filled the air. She coughed and finally took a breath, but dread soon set in when it occurred to her that her savior might be...unscrupulous.

"Th-thank you..." She faltered.

They wore a hood, a dark hood that covered their whole face, and the more she looked at them, the more she saw that their clothes were extremely old and ragged, covered up by a cloak, the only thing that looked fairly new. They stared at the dead creature beside Alice for a moment, and then leisurely withdrew the hood. Underneath was the face of a man that appeared to be in his early twenties. He had a long face, a pronounced jaw line, and quite a bit of stubble from probably days without a shave. He did not smile to show his success, nor did he seem happy that he helped a "damsel in distress". Instead of all these things that a normal helper would have done, he _glared_ at her. Alice shrunk back, feeling awkward and in the way.

"What's your name?" He snapped out, planting he spear firmly into the ground.

She must have looked so silly covered in ashes, sitting stupidly there like she had no common sense. Nevertheless, she said, "Alice...", hoping that it would provide the leverage she needed.

He looked unconvinced. "_The_ Alice?" He gave a short, scornful laugh. "No one by that name has been here in over a half-century...Who do you think I am to believe that _you_, girl, are _the_ Alice Kingsleigh that came into Underland and save all of her Lady's followers?"

"Yes! That was me! I did it all! I slayed the Red Queen's Jabberwock! And my friends are a Hatter and a Mad March Hare and a little Doormouse!" She waved her arms around with every title given to them.

He canted his head, and suddenly was aggressively in her face, hands around her throat. "You're pulling my leg and I know it...The _real_ Alice of legend would not run from a mere land walker!"

"It was not my fault! I had no weapon to defend myself!" Alice cried over the pressure of the strangling grip.

He looked back and forth as if afraid that someone was watching, then released her forcefully. "Show me your arm..."

"My...?"

"I want to see the three marks where the Bandersnatch scratched you if you are who you say you are! Now show me your arm!"

Alice looked at the top part of her limb, almost to where her shoulder was, and swiped off the ashes that concealed the visible scars. She turned her attention back to the man when they were clearly discernible, and his face slowly paled.

"Oh...my...goodness..." Instantly he became gentlemanly, offering her his hand and pulling her up off the ground. "I'm so _so_ sorry! I was trained to be naturally suspicious by my leader! Please don't hold it against me!"

Alice bore his appeals good-naturedly, allowing him all the time he deemed necessary to explain himself. In all actuality, she found, he was really a boy at heart, full of fine intentions and deep emotions, hidden behind an exterior facade of hostility. He told her his tale, shortening it much from what he claimed the original version was, but explaining why he had decided to become one of the Outland - when he said that she was exceedingly happy that her question had been answered of the current location - guards in the first place...something along the lines of honor and responsibility. He was very good with a sword, he boasted, but had lost his only one in a fight with one of the very creatures that had charged Alice only a bit before, thus having to fashion his own spear, for access to weapons these days was limited.

"Excuse me, sir..." Alice said abruptly but kindly during one of his many animated pauses. "I still do not know your name I fear."

"Oh, no need, ma'am. I am called Mister VanNiall by most, and Evenir by least. You are in the middle, I do believe, and so you shall simply call me Evenir, my first name."

His long clarification somewhat confused Alice, but she nodded at the last part. "Do you know the way to Marmoreal, Evenir?"

He tucked a strand of his matted tan hair behind his ear, ill at ease, and said, "Yes, ma'am. I know the way. But with all due respect you don't want to be going there...It's in ruin, just like the rest of this godforsaken place. Underland has turned on its inhabitants..."

"I _do_ want to go there. I must see if..." She faltered, and finished solemnly, "If he is still alive..."

Evenir's face fell in understanding, and it looked as though he held a sympathy for her plight. "All right, Lady Alice, I will take you to Marmoreal, but I warn you, you will not like what you see there."

"I am willing to take that risk." She looked around again. "You must tell me what happened to this place..."

He once more seemed to harbor empathy towards her. "Yes, yes I shall, while we travel east." And with that he headed in the specified direction, to the mountains.

000

"Nobody knew what happened to you. The White Queen sent the whole province out to search for you, but no one could ever find even the slightest trace of your presence. We thought, for the longest while, that you had betrayed us, and gone to the Bloody Red Queen in an act of rebellion, but the Hatter, your friend, knew you better than that. He told us, after what seemed a millennium of time, that you had been taken by another, greater threat by the name of - "

Alice stopped him, not ceasing in her walking but flustered at the almost-mention of the evil one. "No. Do not say his name."

"My most sincere apologies. Well...we all settled in a sense, glad knowing that you were not against us, but still frightened to death that you had been taken away forever by a madman. The searches for your kidnapper's lair became more profuse, as did the failures. The Hatter was traumatized, and he was the only one of us who had ever seen it and escaped with his life, but he would not tell. He closed up into himself, all the smiles, all the fun - just gone from the man. The Queen was not discouraged though, and she persisted throughout the years to send out group after group to find you, all with the same result. Every time, they would return, but one day they did not, inevitably. Their remains were found, scattered and eaten to the bone out near Crims, which was where we knew that _something_ would be located, or else they would still be alive. More heavily armed troops were sent out then, casualties imminent, and up until it was too late, no one knew why. When he attacked, there was no warning. No sign that he would target Marmoreal, such a fortified castle, but he did, and...he killed the Queen."

Evenir took a breath, and Alice was aware that her mouth hung open in horror. Queen Mirana was dead? How was that possible? Was that why "Wonderland" had all the wonder literally ripped out of it?

"H-how?" Alice dared to ask.

"No one...quite knows how he did it. Looking back on it, there must have been someone on the inside; someone who gave him access to her, may she rest in peace. All they found was her body, torn open in her chambers. After that the whole castle was in bedlam, and everyone left for safer territories, some turning to the mountains as their refuge, others going deep into the woods near Marmoreal's remnants. Those who stayed were never heard from again. Without a leader, no one knew what to do, and they pulled people like me from the crowds to train. My training in particular lasted all of fifteen years. I have been out here on my own about ten. We don't age here - I was around when you killed the Jabberwock. That was over fifty years ago.

"It was a long while before our silent killer struck again. He took out all of those who had fled to the mountains with his monstrous followers, and set fire to the dead fields beyond, turning the once green plains farther away into what you see now. The animals migrated away, those who stayed becoming brutal and carnivorous. Fire has ravaged the land around the castle as well, and the once red castle of Crims has now been blackened and molded. That is where he makes his residence, some say. Others say that he comes and goes like you, living a double life as a gentleman in the world above and a tyrant down here every few years. Either way, his hand bear the blood of thousands upon thousands of innocents, and our Queen."

"What became of the Red Queen and the Knave?" questioned Alice, the ache in her stomach from the shock growing worse as she thought this.

"Dead, so they tell me. He killed them both when he had no further use of them, though I hear that the Knave has been seen on a rare occasion. Probably a hallucination of some unfortunate soul..."

"And Marmoreal? You said that it was in as much ruin as this place" - she gestured at the area - "how would you define that?"

Evenir shook his head angrily, the spear in his hand slamming into the dead ground with every forceful step he took. "He wanted to destroy it completely, but was much too indolent in his methods, leaving a crippled structure to forever mar the landscape. Allow me to put it this way, Lady Alice: the main walls are still standing, but do not expect much of anything else to come with that."

Alice wanted to know just exactly how long it would take them to reach the castle, but she knew it would just make things more difficult. She cut off the bottom of her dress up to her knees eventually, much to Evenir's dismay, to make traveling a bit less of a pain. It helped a great deal, and she kept stride with the Outland guard easily from then on. Their conversations had been heightened to a more light form after the deep history of what had happened had been revealed to Alice, and frankly, talking about it any longer before getting to the castle would make her sick. She didn't want to think about what she would do if the Hatter wasn't...alive. With this in her mind, her body subsided, not unconsciously, and she knew she had to rest.

000

The next few days were long and tortuous, for the mountains had come upon them, and Alice had most assuredly not prepared herself for the journey over them. Around ever rocky corner there was something morbid, whether it be skeletal remains or a clue to the settlement that was wiped out. On top of all the depressing sites, there were also the severe temperatures to weather, cold from the lack of sunlight, which in and of itself was depressing. The ascent to over the natural structure moved far too slow, but Evenir assured her that the atmosphere would begin to warm up once they started downward. That much was obvious, but what bothered Alice was how long it took to even reach the top, and how many deceased things she encountered there.

About four days later, Alice dropped to her knees on the flat ground of the other side, so jovial to be out of the coldness that she could have stayed in that position forever. "Where are we now?" She inquired when she had stood at last.

Evenir looked about, and finally replied, "Witzend. There is a gateway into Marmoreal not too far away from here, due South. If my memory serves me correctly, my Lady, there should very well be some of my old acquaintances in the guard tower there, and you might perhaps get some nourishment."

At the mention of food, Alice's stomach growled. She had received very little sustenance for such a long trip on foot, and thinking back on it, was surprised to find that she wasn't rendered completely unable to go on. And go on she did, keeping up with her guide all the way to the looming archway that separated Witzend from Marmoreal, filled by the bulk of an enormous white gate - or at least one that used to be pure white, now riddled with marks from plausible acts of violence. There were figures perched atop twin towers, one on each side of the gate, giving some much needed hope to the young woman. Evenir's spirits were lightened as well, his long strides becoming filled with exultant intent.

They arrived there in no time, seemingly years faster then their trek over the mountain, and were welcomed with open arms. The men who resided there were tremendously glad to see their long-gone comrade again, for ten years out of their reach was a long time, even for those of the immortal persuasion. Evenir introduced Alice to them, and it took them a few moments to find their breath afterwards. Bug-eyed and reverent - all of which was totally unnecessary - they had fetched her and her companion some food. They ate ravenously, Alice forgetting all traces of ladylikeness that she might have still had, after all, she _had_ ripped her dress practically in half. If that wasn't going against all rules, nothing was. The gatekeepers then tended to the pair's wounds, providing Alice with water in which to wash the blood off of her battered hands, as well as a cloth to clean the ash off her face. Alice allowed herself only seconds after that to recover from the journey to this point before telling them to open the gate for the first time in over half a decade. Its doors creaked outward, and she walked through to the other side. When there, Alice stood still for a long while, composing herself. Evenir came up beside her.

"All of your help has meant the world to me," she told him, "but it is time now for me to once again make my own path. I go on to the castle myself."

He gazed in the direction she needed to go, the featherlike wind blowing a lock of his hair across his forehead. "Are you positive, Lady Alice? My assistance has been useful to you so far, and it would honor me to continue to do so...We have all been waiting for so long..."

Though he had a point with his words, Alice turned him down gently again. "I know you have, but until I find the Hatter, I am afraid I will be no good to you all." She placed a hand on his scarred forearm, causing him to shift uncomfortably as if he would be punished somehow. "Stay here with your friends. You have deserved the chance to see them again after all this time. I will be fine, I promise."

"What if your friend is dead? The fates of most of the castledwellers were bleak. What makes you think that he will really be alive?"

Alice wanted to have an answer, she really did. She wanted to be able to tell him a reason to prove that she knew for sure, but she did not. And so, Alice Kingsleigh said in a very timid, childlike voice, "I do not know."

000

The halls of the Marmoreal castle were austere, ghostly white under the weight of the past events that occurred there. The tapestries and carpets were torn, some bloodied, and most of the doors had been partially ripped off their hinges, hanging there in the cold grimness like corpses from a noose. There seemed to be no sign of life, not one single bug or crawling thing to give the scene any such likelihood. Room after room that Alice glanced into warily was torn apart, the presence of death in them more often than not. Her echoing footfalls were the only things that made sound, save for the light wind whispering through the corridors from all the broken windows.

The castle's exterior was far worse than her original expectations. Evenir had said that the main walls were still standing, but in his twenty-five years of time away, some of them had crumbled down around the rest of the remains, making an entry way difficult to find. Most of the chess piece shapped spires had collapsed over time as well, producing a strange effect on the structure. A large portion of the interior was still in tact, if the lifeless place she walked through now could be considered that. There was no hope to finding her old room; the part where it had been located was long gone. If only she could find -

She stopped dead, chills running down her spine.

Something had just moved up ahead, she had seen a shadow.

Try as she might, she could not calm her fears, the old memories of her tormentor still fresh in her mind, and these memories were the motivating factor of her sudden and misguided rapid walk in the direction that she had only just come from. She cared not for what ruckus she created. If something friendly was there, it would have come out of hiding instantly and identified her for who she was, but this entity wanted to keep out of her sight for the time being. In other words: it was probably one of the bad ones, hence her willingness to go to another part of the castle where she would be safe.

When she heard another pair of footsteps behind her, she panicked, and began to run, feeling a sense of dèjá-vu kicking in from says earlier, when another hostile organism had been chasing her out in the sea of ash. The follower traveled on two feet; human or something close to it, fast and full of purpose. She turned a corner. It continued to chase her. When she looked behind her, unlike before, she saw nothing, but the very next second she was on the ground, face down, with the pain of the pursuer's knee pressing into her back. Defensive, Alice wrapped her arms tightly around her head, and when the weight was lifted off of her, she curled into a protective ball, physically preparing herself for worse pain.

All the she received was a pair of hands on her shoulder, steadily turning her over onto her back without a sound. Fingers lightly touched her arms, enfolding themselves around her wrists to remove them from over her face. She defied them, trying her hardest to shake them off, but they would not let go, oddly persistent. When she ultimately gave in to the individual's efforts and let them move her arms away, she opened her eyes, and saw a pair of sad, yet bright green ones above her.

"A-Alice?" Their owner gasped.

**So, the next chapter will feature much more interaction between our two protagonists. I hope you didn't mind my OC, who was a temporary component used only to explain the goings on in Underland. I would really really really love to see you guys review for me, okay? If you have any suggestions I'm always open for them! I hope to get another one out soon because I'm off of school an extra two days for the Easter holiday. Anyway, peace!**


	13. Chapter 12

**Hey all! Here's the next one for ya! Thanks to my one reviewer for the previous chapter! Sorry this one is short, I wanted to get it up! :)**

**Chapter 12**

It was him. The Hatter. He was very much alive and there, probably alone in the castle. Even as he drew away like he was seeing a ghost, Alice had nothing but joy in her heart. He pressed himself against the nearest wall, fingers writhing together in front of himself. It was clear that he could neither fathom nor come to terms with the fact that she was there, before him, as he was before her. Of course, Alice knew she, herself was taking it better than he, for he had been away from her for next to no time compared to the fifty years her absence had plagued him. Very slowly, as not to elicit a flighty response from her troubled friend, she rose to her feet, ignoring the stabbing pain that she felt upon putting weight on her left leg - Alice presumed that it had been from the untimely fall to the hard floor, though nothing else was bothering her. She approached him just as slowly, keeping her steps quiet and her gaze peaceful, hands unmoving at her sides, much unlike his own.

"Hatter...it's me..." She said softly.

He twitched at the sound of her voice, which pervaded the clouded depths of his mind. "No...no..." He replied in a defenseless whimper. "You're not here...You're...you are a hallucination..."

"No I am not. I'm real - here," Alice extended her pale hand to him, "here is your proof."

His fear stricken face only contorted more, and she knew how helpless he had become over the years of solitude, or however long he had been on his own. He must not have had contact with another person for so long, that he knew not how to act around them, much less someone as substantial as she. Nevertheless, trying his best to be brave, he brushed his scarred fingers over the back of her hand, eyes widening, like he hadn't known she was existent when he had touched her before.

"You are really here...aren't you?" The Hatter stated mainly to himself, but Alice nodded to answer his question. "How?"

"I don't know..."

He continued on with a truly serious look, no traces of madness in it. "Where did you come from? Surely you did not go home after - " Stopping mid-sentence his face grew pallid and he made a sound comparable to a strange mixture of a gag and a gasp, lips pressed tightly together. Still, in a breathless, scratchy tone, he finished quickly, "_After that horrid man took you away_."

She took his hand in both of hers compassionately. "No. No. I have been here for a very long time, though it seems to be only days from my point of view..."

Perplexed, the Hatter stared a moment more at her, before he pulled her against him and threw his arms around her, holding her quite tightly, but she said nothing in opposition to it, for his reservations were at ease, and that was all that mattered. She knew it to be in his character to not let her out of his sight again for a very long time, and this gave her some comfort.

"He told me...that you had betrayed me." She spoke quietly into his ear. "He said that you gave me to him willingly..."

"_What_?" He released her. "I did no such thing I promise you Alice! I would never do anything like that to you! _Never_! He told me he would do nasty things to you if I alerted you of his whereabouts! I still remember that day so clearly I see it every time I close my eyes and I cannot sleep or eat or do anything that brings me joy knowing that I could have prevented your capture!"

All of this he said in about one breath.

Alice's heart overflowed with pity towards him. "Do you have a place where you stay?"

"Yes. Yes I most certainly do!"

"Can you take me there? I want to know more about that day..."


	14. Chapter 13

**Hi there! Wow it HAS been bit, hasn't it? Oh well, we shall not dwell on what was, but was **_**is**_** at this present moment: an update! Yay! Just to tell you, I have been trying very hard to keep the geography and locations accurate according to the official map of Underland...have I stated that before? I'm not sure, but I figured I would tell you in case you wanted to look it up for reference. Please do leave me an encouraging review or whatever you wish to say because they make me ever so very happy :)**

**Chapter 13**

His room was untidy, but livable, and as Alice followed her friend into it, she noticed how he kept wringing his hands before him, very much on edge. She wished she could do something for him, but he just needed time to adjust to the unexpected reunion. Trembling significantly, he sat himself down in a rather battered chair after removing his hat, gesturing towards another one for Alice herself to sit upon.

When she had done so, she said, "Now, what happened after I was taken away?"

The Hatter regarded her squarely, fingers still very restless. "I...I watched carefully, until you and your captors were far enough away to not spot me in my haste, you see. I went straight to Queen Mirana, may she rest in peace, and told her of your oh so horrid plight. I didn't even wait for her though I...went out on my own after you, a most ludicrous thing to do, but in that moment it felt like it was the only way I could find you and bring you back safely away from that man and back to the castle where we could all keep an eye on you and - "

"Hatter, you're rambling..." Alice pointed out delicately, and his ashen skin colored a bit.

"I'm...sorry. I'll try and use complete sentences I give you my word, but it's just so strange seeing," he extended a hand and waved it around in her direction, "_you_. Here. Alive and well among other things."

"That is fine, I understand this is all incredibly shocking."

"Yes." The Hatter averted his eyes awkwardly, adding in a quiet, introverted voice, "It is."

Alice knew only that she had to keep him talking, for it would assure that the severe ineptness he had took on over many years would be put to rest, so she indicated, "Please, go on."

"Ah! Well, I followed on horseback, very _sneaky_ I might add, for a long time until I was lead to _his_ lair in the Outlands. I then realized with quite immeasurable regret that I could do nothing...I had been...I had been very foolish, indeed, Alice, and I cost you dearly." Again he stopped, green saucerlike eyes widening emotively. "If I had been a saner soul I would not have acted on impulse. I would not have tried to do something I was incapable of. I do think I'm incurably mad my, dear, sweet girl."

"Not so much so as before." Alice told him with a small smile. "You admitted that you were scared, and that you knew that it had caused you to act unwisely. You have _emotions_, you have the ability to comprehend mistakes, and you have a good heart."

He formed a depressing smile of his own. "The heart does nothing for the mind though, friend."

"We'll see. What did you do after finding the place where they had taken me?"

"I ignored my better judgment as I do more times than not, and went to pay my old acquaintance a little impromptu visit. Unfortunately, his fiendish hellhounds got me first, but understand, this was all part of my plan...or at least _became_ part of my plan once I ran into them. They took me inside, where I met that spiteful woman who used to label herself a "queen"."

Alice nodded. "But she was only a puppet. She was being used to do her new master's bidding, abstractly or not. Did you come upon the Knave?"

"Yes, I did, in fact. A poor fellow really, but horrible to look at." Scrunching up his face, the Hatter gestured to his eye. "What with that misplaced eyeball and all. He was, frankly, creepy. But yes, I saw him, and he let slip that you were with..._him_. Said indication made me assume the nastiest, most appalling goings on, but I could do nothing. With so many of his minions around I had no hope of getting to him in time to do any real good, but within a few moments, they took me to you, they did, and when I saw you there, I felt so relieved! A happiness quickly crushed by the sight of you unconscious it seemed, and that demon crouched over you..."

She nearly shuddered at the memory, the few seconds before she was locked away in the future, leaving Thayer fifty years back to do his sinful deeds. "I had no say I promise you! You have to believe me, Tarrant! He had a watch and he - "

"Did he..._touch_ you?" The Hatter interrupted, leaving the room silent as the grave.

Alice was certain that she looked ashamed as her head slowly hung. She heard her friend rise and approach her, hesitantly, reverted back to the man he had been when she first discovered her in the hallway. He knelt down before her, peering up at her intensely, yet filled with innocent apprehension. His hands found their way to her shoulders, gripping them only just.

"_Did he_?" Came the repeated words. "_Please_...just tell me...I _want_ to know."

A single tear slipped from her eye, traveling down over the planes of her face, leaving a shiny trail behind. The Hatter's gaze followed that droplet of water, until it fell from her chin and was no more.

"He kissed me." She murmured, no more tears escaping, but present even so. "He kissed me and I could do nothing to stop him, but that is all."

"He hurt you?" It was posed as a question, but it sounded so much like a forlorn statement. She knew not what he spoke of, and went to shake her head, but he removed his right hand from her shoulder and raised two fingers to her lips, clarifying what he had said. The scars were still there, repulsive to think about and even more so to feel. His fingertips fluttered there briefly, but he retracted his arm in its entirety when he had made his point. "Nothing is ever simple anymore..." When the avowal had left his mouth, he withdrew all contact he had with the young woman and rose to his feet slowly.

"What do you mean?" Alice questioned, still feeling exceedingly melancholic about everything.

The Hatter reached for his hat, and pulled it firmly upon his head. He was completed then.

"That...shall be proven in due time, now won't it?"

"I do not think I - "

He gave her no time to finished before he grabbed her hand forcefully and lead her towards the doorway. "Come, come, we mustn't dilly dally. There are some special people who have been anticipating your return for a great while now, and they have been kept in waiting long enough I might add."

"Who - who are they?" Alice kept up with him, hardly, but did still.

Her colorful, yet disgruntled friend, animated about something at last, spared her a long, meaningful glance. "They are our elders."

000

It seemed too much to ask for a rest, for traveling fifty years into the future only to make a long, four-day journey, pause, and move again. In either respect, Alice was exhausted beyond all reason, but still she followed mindlessly, knowing that the Hatter knew what he was doing...or at least hoping so. He went into the dark woods a short distance away from the devastated castle, within the province of Snud, with Alice in tow, showing no signs of fear like he very well should have. Then again, she thought to herself, he had more than likely spent the better part of her absence hidden away in the dark, skeleton of a fortress, growing accustomed to the lack of light. She didn't show it, but the gloomy wood frightened her, more so than it had when she had first arrived in Underland all those years ago. If Evenir had been correct, it was much more dangerous now than it had been before, filled with carnivorous beasts of all sorts. She suspected glumly that the Hatter had no concept of this risk, bent on finding those who he had referred to as "elders".

The sounds of the creatures all around were eerie, a chorus of portentousness filling her head with ill feelings. Every so often, a pair of eyes would be perceived through the bottomless, blue dreariness, slowly sliding behind a tree when spotted by Alice's own, ever-moving eyes. Small mammals skittered around, some trying to bit at her boots. She kicked them away persistently.

Deep inside the forest, when not so much time had passed at all, due to the help of a worn path her friend had found, the Hatter bade her to halt where she was, and looking carefully ahead, she saw what appeared to be a clearing in the distance. There was also movement in that clearing, and voices, when she listened conscientiously. So relieved was she to know that there was other living, civilized life besides the few she had seen in this shell of a place she once called Wonderland, that she nearly broke into a run to greet them, but the Hatter seemed..._cautious_, and it made her speculate whether these people were going to even react to their presence pleasantly. He allowed her to walk with him, a few steps at a time, ever watchful. Alice wanted to ask him what he was so wary of, but she assumed right away that it had something to do with her. When they were very close, hidden only in a protective shadow, he looked at her, and nodded encouragingly.

Initially, upon stepping out into the large, treeless circle of light, no one paid them heed, going about their business, but as Alice walked farther into the well-established encampment behind the madman, they all paused to stare. She kept her head down, but from there, occasionally snuck a glance at the onlookers. They were very much like the Hatter himself, with pale skin and vivid, lively colors marking their faces. Their hair varied in shades, providing some lack of semblance between them, but she felt she was looking at a horde of replicas of her friend even still. Their eyes bored into the pair of travelers as they crossed through the camp. The Hatter didn't say much, unexpectedly due to his friendly mannerisms, but instead went on his way like he noticed not those who watched him and his young companion. Alice looked around the man in front of her momentarily, seeing a small white animal sitting in the grass up ahead. She become conscious, joyfully, of who it was before it was even visually clear.

"McTwisp!" She exclaimed elatedly, forgetting the Hatter for an instant to go and capture the white rabbit up in a tight hug. Nivens McTwisp squirmed in her grasp, nearly clawing her arms before she sat him down gently back on the grass.

"Oh do be careful, I have a very bad back, you know!" He cried, shaking himself off attentively. By this time the Hatter had joined Alice by her side, obviously glad to see the constantly worried rabbit as well. Nivens looked up at the two when he had finished, and his eyes widened considerably, his mouth opening slightly at the sight of both of them, alive. "Oh heavens above..." He said in a gasp. "Oh dear...oh my...I can't...I can't believe it..." He faltered on his feet, swaying unstably. "You must come with me right, both of you! They are waiting..."

"The elders?" Alice remarked in a quiet voice.

Nivens raised up on his hind legs, sniffing the air before him as most rabbits did. "She knows? Oh dear...she knows." This he said to himself, mainly, but stared at the Hatter inquiringly. "You told her?" He received a mere nod in response. "Well, I suppose...it was bound to happen. Come then, I'll take you to them straight away!" He bounded away - as best as he could with his said, "bad back" - expecting them to follow, which they did.

"What happened to his back?" Asked Alice, nearly silent.

The Hatter kept his eyes on the retreating figure of the white rabbit, and replied, "When _his_ minions came to the castle, one of them grabbed him in their mouth, and bit him very badly, with the intent to kill, nearly breaking the poor creature's back. He was saved, however. He has never fully recovered, even after so much time out here in the safety of this settlement." He sounded tremendously serious, uncharacteristic of him until their abrupt reunion only hours prior. "That is what is wrong with his back, love."

Alice, involuntarily shuddered, and her friend put a comforting, though timid arm around her shoulder. "Don't worry, Alice, I won't let anything try to break your back, I promise."

_Well that was comforting_...She thought.

A large tent was where Nivens took them, and Alice only had a few seconds to brush herself off, a practice which was put to a stop by both the Hatter and rabbit.

"No need, no need." She was advised. "They will be too involved with your return to pay any worry to your appearance."

That was all that was said before Nivens entered the tent, said a few words of shock, and both the Hatter and the young woman were let in by the guards, who were stunned senseless to see them.

Inside, there was a long table, and around it sat many souls. Each was a male, old, yet young in physicality, with fading colors on their austere faces. All eyes were on them, and the elders stood in unison to welcome them, but gave no indications of cheerfulness. No smiles. Nothing.

"Good day, Alice Kingsleigh and Tarrant Hightopp. It has been a long time." A particularly stern looking man with straight, black hair, lined with silver, said. He gestured to the sudden brace of seats at the table. "Please do have a seat, for time is of the essence, and we have been waiting for a very, long time."

**Well, there ya have it, folks. Chapter 13! I know, I know, I promised romance, but please do be patient, I shall add some in the next chapter if you are good and review. A pretty good deal, I might add :D**

**Anyway, have a good day and don't forget to click on ze button below and leave your feedback!**


	15. Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: For the sake of putting one of these...I don't own the people or official places mentioned in this endeavor. Don't throw me in jail! Oh well...at least I have Johnny Depp locked up in my closet – I meeaan...I DON'T...No. I definitely don't.**

***Johnny peeks around corner timidly***

**Me: No! Get back in the closet! They'll see you!...Move on then! Nothing to see here!**

**000**

**Heeey everybody! Here is the next installment of the saga for you! Thanks to my reviewers for the last chapter! It meant the world to me! Please read and review like the awesome people you are! C'mon...I know you want to (^_^)**

**Chapter 14**

Alice took another long moment to let her eyes roam over the faces of the Elders seated at the table. They had not given their names; she didn't expect them to do so anyway. The Hatter had explained in an undertone when there had been a spare moment that they were not accustomed to interaction with anyone but themselves, all except one: the settlement's message-deliverer. Said man looked very young to be greater in age than most, sporting curly, deep brown hair, similar to the Hatter's but far more groomed. He had an attractive face, but a mischievous one at that, and often shot purposeful smirks and other impish expressions in her direction. Needless to say, her mad friend noticed these with quite a considerable amount of vigilance, scooting just a little closer to her to make a point: she was not to be trifled with. Alice did not even try to tell him that everything was all right. To him, it clearly wasn't.

"Lady Alice, have you anything to say?" The black-haired Elder piped up after a silence.

Alice regarded them all with a puzzled look, but sat up straighter nonetheless and tried to tell them something that they would find useful. "As you probably have already assumed, time for me has been substantially shorter than it has been for you. What was a few days to me, has been over fifty years for the rest of the Underland people."

The message-deliverer gazed at her with electric blue eyes, causing her to look away for a split second. "And how, exactly, did this come to pass?" His voice was a perfect tenor, his formation of words eloquent to the very end. "Surely you have a better grasp on what is going on than we..."

"I'm sorry, what is your name, sir?"

Another smirk. "Dalziel Callan, milady." He dipped his head ever so slightly.

The black-haired Elder's face lit up with sudden realization when she asked him his name, but it still remained nonindulgent. "I believe we are in fault, Alice, for we have not introduced ourselves to anyone since we arrived at this place. I am Lorne Ranse. My seat is at the head of this table, as you have noticed."

There were ten of them, she observed, counting Lorne and Dalziel. Ralston Macadam, tall and burly with a startling amount of hair. Marquis Sparrly, a thin, shrinking-violet of a man. Torquil Waterford, who supposedly never talked unless he absolutely needed to. Wallace Bannock, conqueror of a province that no longer existed many, many years prior. Jarlath Glenndon, - who looked enough like the Hatter for Alice to question whether there was some relation down the line – dainty but humorous in his own little way. Bainbridge Finian, white-haired but still youthful looking, nicknamed privately "Finn", by the other Elders. Girvin Gill, possessing a memory so great that he claimed to recall the origins of the deceased White Queen's castle. Kavanagh Tynance was last, very plain, lacking in the bright colors his colleagues did, but with an excellent taste in attire – Alice would give him that.

When she had finished greeting them all, standing, she was brought back to the question she had discourteously left to hang, reminded by a little bird called Tarrant Hightopp, seated still next to her, but keeping a close eye on Dalziel Callan more than ever.

"I'm so sorry." She apologized. "Going back to your question, Mister Callan - "

"Please, call me Dalziel. Do not think yourself a stranger to us, Lady Alice." The young Elder interrupted with another telltale quirk of his mouth.

"Yes, well, _Dalziel_, paying heed to your question: I was taken away from Marmoreal by a certain Barabbas Thayer" - the Hatter cringed painfully at the name - "who has done what most cannot. He has harnessed the power of time travel."

Murmurs of disbelief swept through the place of meeting.

Alice continued, "It is hard to believe, yes, but...I would not hesitate as much in this world as undoubtedly every single person above ground would. Here, things happen, things that would send someone like me to the nearest insane asylum if anyone ever heard what goes on in this land. And I promise you, this has all happened. It is all very real."

"Do you know anything about this evil man's location?" The Hatter's lookalike, Jarlath, questioned.

"I was hoping you all knew more than I, but a recent guide of mine informed me that he resides in the Red Queen's castle."

Wallace Bannock huffed. All eyes turned to him. He lifted his chin haughtily. "That coward. He has not been seen in more than brief glimpses in nearly a decade. He hauls up in his den like a snake, while the rest of us fight to endure our isolation."

"Wallace," Lorne chastised, "do not scare our guest with your pompous suppositions. Lady Alice has been very good to us thus far."

"If I may..." Marquis said suddenly in his quite voice. His hands rose to flutter over his mouth nervously. "No one has made any attempts to..._find_ him, milady. How can we be sure that he still even exists?"

Alice nodded with understanding. "He lives. I have never seen a greater will to survive than I did in his eyes. And trust me when I say that he is far from done with us yet. I was told that he killed off all of those who sought shelter in the mountains, and he is probably looking for you all as we speak."

There was a chorus of arguing voices at this, and she sat down, giving no further comment on the matter as they talked amongst themselves.

"You...are _exceedingly_ good at this..." The Hatter complimented, watching her thoughtfully as she situated herself back in her chair. "How can you not be" - he paused to search for a word in his head - "_fazed_?"

She shrugged. That was all she needed to do to get her point across.

000

They were to stay at the settlement until further notice, more of a demand than a request courtesy of the Elders. All of them had been affable, to say the least, but on more than one occasion Alice had found herself feeling disturbed at the deep stares she received from them. She did not blame them though, taking into consideration that they had not seen someone such as her for an indefinitely lengthy amount of time. The feeling was only made worse when she was escorted to her tent, made up for her while the meeting was still in process. It was a plain domicile, differing greatly from her lavish quarters at the white castle, but it emitted a certain homelike quality that she had not known since her arrival in Underland. She looked around the interior of it, thankful to have a private place of her own out of the elements, and then went about the tedious operation of improving her appearance.

She began with her hair - a deplorable mess it was in. She dared not attempt to comb it or anything of the sort, for only an equestrian-type brush would get through the tangles and mats now. Instead, she found a length of twine in a basket of such things provided for her exploitation, and quickly, reflectively, secured it in a messy bun on the back of her head. It would do, she ensured herself, taking a glance in the small looking glass she had located. Alice then went about cleaning the rest of herself, stripping off the worn, ripped, red dress before thoroughly washing herself off with a wet cloth. The bothersome ash completely gone, she donned a brown dress, with green on the skirt. It was comfortable, but after being held captive by that sinful red thing for all those days, she found _anything _a relief. Her filthy boots were replaced by soft, moccasin-like shoes, supportive enough on the soles to allow running, but nice enough to feel like a slipper for regular use.

Decent enough to show her face in the public area without unwanted self-consciousness, she pushed aside the tent flaps that kept her from the outside world, and stepped out. The initial reaction from all in the immediate area was better then she originally thought it would be, for they gave her looks of minimal mind. The day had turned to night, and she walked a little ways away from her habitation in hopes of finding the Hatter. She had not been told where he was staying, and would have naturally deemed him the easiest to locate on the premises, but with so many that looked like his direct relatives, that would prove harder than she ever imagined. The people of Underland were some she had not often seen, being distracted with her task when she had first arrived...over fifty years ago. It felt odd to think about. If that was really how it was to be, she was technically almost seventy years old, stuck in a nineteen-year-old young woman's body. The prospect was not something she wished to dwell on, for if she went home, all she once knew would be different, and the time period would be well into the 1900's. Her mother, sister and all those she held dear in life would be dead. She would be alone. Thankfully, however, she caught sight of the Hatter before any more despairing notions could arise.

He sat by himself beside a practically vacated fire, a piece of wood for a makeshift chair. His face was blank as he watched the flames, listless and unblinking. The brim of his hat dipped low over his continence, wreathing it in shadow. Alice went to him, and since there was an abundance of room, sat down beside him. Still he did not move, obviously still taking everything in. She let him, silently by his side, as it should have been. When he did notice her, he lightened up a bit. Eyes restless, he gave her the sad smile that had been inflicting him since she had found him on his own in the ruined castle.

"Alice..." He acknowledged quietly, folding his hands neatly in his lap. "_The_ Alice." This was added on a whim, soft and woefully blithesome. They reckoned one another for a few, blessed moments, before the Hatter gave a small jerk of his head. "I see you've, _ah_, tidied yourself. Always a good lad, I do say."

She hadn't the heart to correct his confusion with her gender. It was just how he was.

"Yes, I have, and you have as well?"

"Well, I believe so, but I cannot be sure. I am...that is, I have a very large cloud hanging over me..._figuratively_."

"What sort of cloud?"

"Erm, I am not certain, not quite at least...or was it most...?" He turned his head away and shook it at himself. "I do not know, I fear. _Clouds_, you see, they come and go. They just go "_poof_" up in the sky, and you never see them again in the same shape. I, myself, enjoy watching clouds, but..." He trailed off lamentably, and Alice narrowed her eyes, awaiting what he would say next, "...it is night now, and there are no clouds...except for the one above me."

"Could it possibly be emotional?"

His neck snapped up in recognition, and he bobbled out a nod. "Yes, yes that is exactly what it is! How do you know such things?" A half-grin. "You _smart thing you_..."

"You've been lonely without your friends, haven't you?"

He gave no signal, positive nor negative, of his accord. "Have I ever told you, that I am an adept gardener?"

She came to the conclusion that her previous question was disregarded. "No, you haven't."

"Oh yes! I keep the flowers and trees safe now at Marmoreal; they are my friends. Sometimes...I speak to them, and they say things back. Queen Miranna, may she rest in peace, always encouraged those of us in her court to speak to the plants, so we did. Back then," he went on steadily, "everyone was still alive; all of them. It wasn't until many weeks later that the first death happened." The Hatter choked on his breath, eyes wide, voice strained. "Poor Mally was eaten trying to save the white rabbit." When it was said, everything made sense to Alice concerning Nivens' "back problem". It took him a minute to regain control over himself. He shed not a tear, but his eyes changed to a sad blue color, then clouded over with a shade of gray. "Those dreadful creatures got her." He growled, accent abruptly changed to an aggressive form of Outlandish. "The same fate became Thackery. He had no _power_ over himself. His spastic behavior was the death of him, like I always knew it would be. I told him! I _told_ him he had to learn to control himself!" His hands clenched into fists, but with Alice's touch on his arm, a gesture she often did when he was going into one of his bizarre rages, he calmed. "I told him..." He whimpered finally.

Alice shook her head unhappily. No wonder he was so upset. He had those horrible memories to bear on his shoulders. He might as well have been holding up the weight of the world. She reflected on the doormouse's little face and brave heart, and the crazy, lovable March Hare. She only then found cognizance on the matter, missing them awfully, along with the White Queen. Tarrant Hightopp and McTwisp were truly the only two of her friends left. Compassion filled her for him. He couldn't possibly remain this way; it just wasn't him. His green eyes looked back at her; he was a miserable, depressed shell of the fun-loving, playful madman he had been.

"Please don't be like this..." Alice told him earnestly in a subdued voice. "It is not you."

He was eerily quite before speaking. "I know it isn't." The Hatter turned to face her better. "You poor, poor thing...if only you knew a life free of pain. 'Twas a path best traveled in solitude if I ever saw one."

"Did you watch them all die?" She asked without warning. His posture stiffened.

"I could do nothing..._nothing _at all. Thackery's eyes, the life leaving them. Mally's dying squeaks of agony. My Queen's bloodied dress. Yes, Alice, I saw them die. I saw them _dead_."

She flinched only just when both of his hands came to rest on her face, cradling her head. His fingers moved up and down assuasively beside her ears, he moved closer to her. "Do not be in doubt, dear Alice, I have made a promise to myself and to you that you will not join them in death. You have to stay here with us...with _me._" His heartfelt wish was placed deep within the confines of her heart, never to be spoken in waking hours again.

"I will." Alice whispered, giving her childlike, innocent friend an exhibition of reliance in return.

The Hatter closed his immense eyes then, and, keeping both hands on her face, placed an eternally grateful kiss on her forehead. Surprising as it was – bringing to memory his awkward temperament when it came to expressing any sort of affection - it was an emotionally placating sign of his faith in her, and as she heard him exhale sedately, she knew he had credibly resolved what had been bothering him for so long.

He was free to be himself again.

000

**Well, I enjoyed writing that one! **

**A little note: the Elders' names were all formed from those of the Irish/Scottish/Gaelic origin! I had fun with that last night :)**

**Please do review and tell me what you think!** **I'll try very hard to get the next chapter up soon! **


	16. Chapter 15

**Well now, I surely expected more feedback on that one...But, whadaya gonna do...Oh well, I shall persist! Thanks to the one reviewer who took the time to express their like for this story. Pretty pretty please review on the next one guys? I love hearing from ya ever so very much ^_^**

**So, as of late I have been trying feverishly to determine what I want to happen in the short amount of time until the climax of this story, which I have planned, as well as the very end, a most anticipated thing to write. I would also like you to note that it will get darker again soon, but right at the current moment I have been merely putting in lighter, more dialogue-centric chapters as to make the fall more intense still. So without further or do...I present the next chapter, a filler, but still here! Enjoy!**

**Chapter 15**

It was the middle of Alice's third day residing in the settlement. People had long since stopped giving her the hypercritical stares they had when she first arrived, but had resorted instead to ignoring her all together. She had been told that their feelings on her fifty-year absence ran deep, and they would be less forgiving and professional towards her than the Elders themselves were. Over the course of the second day, she had befriended a number of the older, wiser Underland officials, the best of which being Bainbridge Finian. He insisted that she call him Finn, allowing her in on the private nickname that his equals had christened him with. She referred to him pleasantly and without discomfort with the name, and he in turn introduced her to some of the more amiable inhabitants. He was also excellent conversation, explaining in detailed terms how his hair wasn't always white, but he had once walked alongside the White Queen in her court, and all subjects in her direct presence for extended periods of time had to blend in with one another - it was a strange practice indeed. Either way, his hair was permanently colorless for the rest of his given days. He went on to elucidate on the lives of all the other Elders, giving information about their temperaments and preferred times of socialization, as well as their ages, the oldest being, quite obviously, Lorne Ranse, a man of over eight-hundred, in the _very_ slowly aging body of about a forty-year old. The others were far less, and therefore each looked between twenty and thirty, though they were all past three-hundred.

The Hatter was always close by, watching discretely, but it never seemed to bother Finn as he showed her and told her many things, sharing his wisdom. Alice always had to wonder how much her spending time with others, specifically other men, affected her mad friend. She couldn't say he did the same with any other women, keeping to himself mostly, and she often found herself feeling a bit bad, even though it had only been a few days. She did confront him about it briefly, but of course, being the ever caring, forthcoming, and loony person he was, he did not tell her anything he knew she would not want to hear, uncharacteristically keeping the feelings of growing blameless possessiveness behind his large, green eyes. Alice accepted the fact that he would not admit to anything for some time, and didn't press the matter.

This confused Alice, what with her being the naturally inquisitive person that she was, and on top of that, it caused her to feel stressed and unhappy, something she hoped she would not feel for a long time after be ridding herself of Barabbas Thayer's presence. She walked out of the encampment, not far into the forest beyond, but far enough to assure her the privacy alone with her thoughts that she sought. Solace was hard to find in a land so riddled with the permanent scars of the past, and she sat down at the base of a great tree, staring vacantly off into the dark distance, deep into the gloom of the trees that daylight scarcely touched. She had no desire to know what lay there, or what foul creatures made their homes in the never-ceasing murk. Her thoughts strayed to her childhood, for reasons unknown, her father. He would know what to do. He always did. It seemed childish to be concerned about how her attention to others made her insane friend feel, but nonetheless she knew that her father would be able to talk some sense into her; that he would know how to make things infinitely better for her, bringing mental clarity along with it.

"Alice?" She was reminded of the night she decided to stay, and the celebration. The Hatter had appeared in the doorway, not being fond of gatherings, and joined her. She turned to see Dalziel Callan standing there, hands clasped behind his back unassumingly, watching her with curiosity. "I'm sorry, am I intruding?"

"Oh! No, no not by any means. I was only just thinking you see."

He smiled, different from the smirk he had given her many times at the meeting, and looked at the ground as if uncomfortable. "Thank you, milady. I only hope that I might steal a moment of your time for some light conversation. Forgive me for my bluntness, but I am very interested in knowing more about you."

Alice shrugged, not standing up from where she sat. "Yes, you may, I suppose. But not long, I promised the Hatter that I would help him with something very shortly."

Dalziel agreed, and then looked around before gesturing towards the forest floor in front of her. "Might I sit and join you?"

"Feel free."

He did so, crossing his legs comfortably and studying her. "You know, I have to wonder why you still call Tarrant by the title of his profession..." Dalziel trailed off. "Why not by his name? You _are_ acquainted are you not?"

"Well, that depends on what you mean when you say 'acquainted'."

"Friends, companions, allies? What else could I possibly mean?" But a spark had appeared in his eye; a roguish spark that conveyed what he was really thinking as he said it. Alice frowned at him when she saw this. He exhaled, defeated. "Come now, Lady Alice, surely you do not think that no one can see what you feel for him?" He leaned a bit closer as if to tell a secret, "How you _look_ at him."

"You know nothing of what you speak. I hardly know you." Alice stated frankly.

"Oh but we've met before..."

The way he said it sent chills down her spine. Her skin felt cold all of the sudden, and she went to stand up. He matched her, not threatening in any way, but the manner in which he had voiced the fact was enough to make her want to flee. In that moment he had sounded more like Thayer than anyone ever had, his bright blue eyes flickering with black, most likely her imagination...or not. Her heart raced within her chest, legs aching to carry her away to the safe, comforting company of the Hatter, but she had to know.

"Where?" She said stiffly, backing away from him in slow steps.

Dalziel's brow furrowed. "Milday? Are you all right?" He took the liberty of reaching out to her, gently wrapping his pale fingers around her wrist to steady a sudden wave of dizziness that caused her to stumble.

"_Where_?" She demanded more forcefully. "Where have we met?"

He released her at the tone. "At the party so very long ago to celebrate your victory? We danced together, surely you remember? My hair was temporarily white then, though, but, I would have thought you would recall it." All traces of whatever she had seen had disappeared, replaced by a genuinely concerned Elder who looked very much unlike the young, puckish man she had encountered in the meeting. Still...she felt ill at the very thought.

Alice could barely manage to shake her head. "I do not remember, no." And she honestly could not, no matter how many times she replayed that horrible length of time where she was forced to partake in the party activities. "I have to go now." She added. "My presence will be awaited by now..."

Dalziel walked beside her. "Allow me to escort you there, milday. No need to have to getting lost on your way back, now."

As they walked, she glanced up at him, and for the shortest of instants, she saw the most frightening expression she had ever perceived on a face so ingenuous - eyes burning, mouth turned up into a sickening grin - just before it vanished without a trace, replaced by a mask so often worn.

**So what'd ya think? My OC has earned a bit of suspicion no? Hows about you review and tell me how you think this is going to go down hmm?**


	17. Chapter 16

_**Thanks to my one reviewer again, though I can't say I blame any one of you readers that provided me with hits. It has only been a mere couple days, after all. Please do continue to R&R like you all used to!**_

_**Chapter 16**_

_Tarrant hastily gathered up all of the berries he had spilled on the ground and dropped them back into the basket he carried. He cursed himself and his clumsiness, for that and that alone had been what had caused him to trip and drop the basket in the first place. He had gone out momentarily to the edge of the forest at the request of Nivens McTwisp, begging Tarrant to make himself useful instead of sitting glumly around staring off into space like he normally did, claiming it was starting to perturb the settlement's inhabitants. And so with a small, colorful basket in hand, he tread off at a specified time, wondering where Alice was, as was customary. He had previously explained what he was to do with his time to her, and she had said she would help him, much to his delight. But when she didn't show, he went off on his own, filling the basket with bright pink berries of an unidentified name, yet safe to ingest. On his way back, he had not watched carefully where he was going, and tripped rather violently over a pesky root that formed about a foot-high arch out of the ground, landing on facedown on the ground, the berry filled basket out of reach. That was how he got to be in the present situation, picking up what fortunate little pieces of food that had escape the wrath of the basket's weight upon them. There weren't nearly as many as before, so he sighed and half-heartedly returned to the bush from which they originated._

_He had only just begun to replace the amount he had lost when he saw Alice approaching him with a most disturbed expression. When he looked at her directly, it changed in the blink of an eye, but there was no denying that something had spooked_ her. Tarrant bit his lip purposefully to keep himself from saying anything for the time being, feeling far too emotionally jumbled to deal with the load of the problem. After a momentary period of enlightenment for young Alice, as well as an account of what had happened to half of the first basketful, she set to work helping him, saying nothing but the occasional small remark about particular berries. At least she was with him and not off where people like that despicable leech of an Elder could get to her...

"Hatter?" She asked him finally, and his attention darted to her. "I'm worried..."

"Whyever is that?" He rejoined faintly. "I thought that you felt safe here?"

"I _do_...it is just that - well, I thought I saw..." she swallowed, "_him_ today. In that Dalziel Callan fellow."

Tarrant felt his breath catch in his throat, something that often happened, but not regularly accompanied with so great a wariness. "That is - _quite_ impossible, my friend. You are safe here. Think nothing of that man any more." He said, trying his best to reassure her, though he wasn't so positive himself. He then felt compelled to add, "Perhaps it was all a bit of amiss imagination?"

Alice's brow furrowed considerably, but she seemingly forced her head to nod. "Yes, just maybe it was."

"Good then. Shall we carry on with the picking and such?" He asked, for he had realized they had stopped in their efforts to refill the basket.

"Oh..." Was all she said, and went back to work.

Soon, they had regained the amount of berries that Tarrant had initially possessed, and he handed the basket to Alice to carry, paranoid that he would trip again in his haste to make up for lost time. With any luck, the White Rabbit wouldn't hold it against them. He paused when he saw the arched root ahead, warning Alice of its being there with animated hand motions and incoherent babble. Well, to _him_ it was never incoherent. It was simply speech that he made his own. People had grown used to it long ago. They walked around the thing that had caused him to trip before, Tarrant being exceptionally more careful than his female companion, even though he no longer carried the basket. He advised her to hurry as he walked faster, telling her that Nivens would be most stressed - to which he added a most determined "it would be bad for his heart, you know..." - if they were much later. Fortunately, when they arrived at the place where they had been told to meet the rabbit, he was nowhere in sight. This brought him relief, among the many other emotions that he knew existed within him.

He felt his mouth turn up into a grin, but inside he felt different. Very different.

000

Alice handed the basket of berries to the woman who was there to meet them in the place of McTwisp. The Hatter mumbled something to himself while he smiled widely, and abruptly excused himself. He did not need to tell Alice that he required a bit of time alone for her to understand that. He was a most difficult individual to comprehend though...

She looked back to the young woman who appeared to be about her age. Of course, however, that was highly unlikely. She _looked_ Alice's age, would have been a more accurate thought, seeing as she was probably older than Alice's long dead grandmother.

"Hello." Alice said cheerfully, expertly hiding her utter bewilderment on the recent past. "I apologize for my friend...he is a bit, well - _mad_."

She giggled girlishly. "Oh, quite all right, milady. Quite all right." Tucking the basket handle into the crook of her arm, she then furthered shyly, "I am Blair, Blair Callan."

Alice was certain her face went white for a second. "C-Callan?" She faltered. "You're Dalziel's...?"

"Sister, milady. One of many."

"Oh." Secretly, she had been hoping for something more along the lines of 'wife'. "I thought you might be married to him."

"No, no! My brother has never felt a need to tie himself to another in that manner. He..._gets_ what he wants and leaves it at that...if you understand?"

Alice bit the insides of her mouth to prevent a scowl of revulsion from forming. "Yes. I do. Is it like that often with your people?"

Blair dropped her gaze sheepishly. "No...not often. They rejoice in marriage, but my brother thinks it foolish." Something came to life on her face, and her eyes widened. "Has he come after you?"

"Not exactly. I mean, he talked to me today but - "

"Today?"

"Yes?"

The other young woman shook her head. "That is not possible. He has been with me up until not five minutes ago all day, helping me straighten up the kitchen area. There is no way he could have talked to you, milady, pardon my saying so."

Alice was fully aware that her mouth was hanging open by that point. She tried to form a reply, but nothing would come to her. That ever familiar chill that she had felt earlier ran up and down her spine again, making the back of her neck tingle undesirably. Blair studied her with great concern, but dared not touch her.

"Milady? Are you all right? You're pale as a sheet, you are!"

Somehow, she felt herself nod, before saying an rapid goodbye and going directly to her tent. What she needed was rest. She was hallucinating. However she had ended up in this time must have had some effect on her sanity, tainted though it already may have been. How could she have seen Dalziel; talked to him, if he had not been able to visit her all day? How had she experienced all those very real feelings of alarm?

It was all too bewildering...

She would sleep, and perhaps when she awoke it would all feel a bit clearer.

000

**Erm? Reviews? Maybe-possibly-kinda-sorta-yeah? Thanks!**


	18. Chapter 17

**A/N: Hm. Curious how long it has been, yes? Over a year I think? Actually, no, it isn't at all. It's quite depressing, really. But alas, readers, this authoress has been dreadfully busy, and when you write about ten things at once, certain projects (ergo this one) tend to be put on the back burner for long periods of time. I'm involved in writing an original novel at the moment and its sapping my creativity almost all together.**

**With that said: I have decided to bring my favorite OC baddie back into the picture! I recently renewed my love for the band in which the person he is based after resides, and so therefore I feel I can write him more easier and willingly.**

**Without further or do: here...we...go!**

**Chapter 17**

The wind sang an eerie sort of song as it reached the ears of a lone man. The temperature was unpleasant and the darkness had just begun to gather, turning the undeviating grey sky an inky black hue, but the man did not notice. He wore pristine, white gloves upon hands, long fingers wrapping around the skulled handle of a sleek cane. A coat of the deepest crimson fell to his waist, the twin tails, lower. The ground beneath his feet, he noted, was still green, dull, yes, but green all the same. This he prodded disdainfully with the toe of his elegant boot until a small section of it had been upturned, the ugly dirt and roots exposed for his viewing. He stared at the unprotected bit of earth for a second and that only and then placed his foot over it, crushing it flat. His fingers shifted on the cane as he did so.

His gaze returned to what lay below - a forest with a visible clearing within it. The light that was provided from fires sprung up in that treeless place, tendrils of smoke curling skyward. The scent, he noted, was enough to make him shift restlessly where he stood. He was a man in waiting - a very impatient one at that.

"You called for me?" came a low, guttural growl from behind him.

Without moving to face one who addressed him, he smirked and replied, "Indeed, I did."

"What is to be brought about?"

He huffed, amused. "Why, only what has been discussed, of course."

There was a brief moment without words, as if the speaker behind him was considering what to say next.

"Why are you bothering to do anything at all? You got what you wanted already - "

"Since when do you assume you have the authorization to question my methods?" He gave not even an instant for a response. "You do not, so kindly keep your disgusting mouth shut when such an urge to do so arises." Another short pause. "Now...listen carefully, you repulsive excuse for a creature." The man rolled his neck lazily then, but kept his body turned as not to have to gaze upon the thing. "She lead us to them. Her usefulness has run its course, and now it is time to slaughter her once and for all with the other animals..."

There is silence for a moment after he finishes in a slow voice.

It annoys him. "You may speak now."

"You are simply..._killing_ her?" It would take a fool not to notice the hesitance that seeped into the normally grating tone.

"Go on..." said the man, shifting again.

"After all this, she will merely meet the same fate as the others?"

"Oh, _tsk tsk_, Lucifer, we _all_ meet that fate sooner or later. But to answer your question, no - I plan on having my fun. After all, it _has_ been over fifty years since I have seen her face in my true form."

Lucifer stood up a little straighter. "Shall I lead your minions down to the encampment?"

He nodded. "Yes, yes, and do not delay...or allow your shiftless subordinates to fail me again."

Left alone seconds later, he trained his eyes upon the small clearing once more.

"Burn them," he murmured.

000

Alice busied herself with different things in an attempt to distract her thoughts from straying back to the mysterious and disturbing confrontation with Dalziel. She rearranged the items in her living quarters, until she realized that she had moved the same basket back and forth about three times, having been so concentrated on diverting her attention that she had stopped paying attention to what she was doing. She couldn't help but smile at this and think, _Here I am sinking further into lunacy, though it would be perfectly natural for me to do so back from where I come_...

She stood up and turned around quickly to see the Hatter standing awkwardly at the entrance to the tent, confused expression on his face and gaze flicking around.

"Oh, hello Hatter," greeted Alice, making an effort to sound cheerful. She held the basket in front of her. "You may come in if you like."

His response was the slightest bit delayed. "Yes, yes! If indeed that is deemed morally correct by these peoples' standards..." He motioned outside with his head.

"What do you mean?"

"You don't know?" Alice shook her head after he asked, and he walked inside closer to her, arms held out to the sides in a carefree yet purposeful manner. "These people here...these _glorious folk _- they find it improper for those of the contrary gender to be in each others' place of living unless of course they're - " he stopped, abruptly at that, when he saw the basket in her hand, "Ooh, what a lovely little basket you have there, Alice! Might I look at it?"

She handed it to him, accepting his quirk for completely going off subject for what it was: an attempt to avoid inelegance.

"Why did you move it so many times?"

"What?"

"This basket."

Alice blinked, and then shrugged very slowly. "I was preoccupied I suppose." Then she realized what his question meant, "Were you standing there watching this whole time?"

"Why, yes!" the Hatter giggled brightly, as if there was nothing at all queer about it. "Why would I not be? You're you, and with you being you-ish and such, I find it quite satisfying to just..." he trailed off and cleared his throat, sinking into the awkwardness he often displayed, "...watch."

He got a strange look for the gauche declaration.

Once again having to allow his blunt statement without any other sort of feedback, Alice scoffed lightly at him and all but snatched the empty basket away, "Quiet you," she jabbed in good humor. He grinned. She placed the object haphazardly away and sat down on a flattened tree stump that had been fashioned into a chair. There was another one within the living area, close to her own, and she gestured towards it in a silent offer for the Hatter to be seated as well. Still smiling in a both innocent and nearly childlike way, he lowered himself down onto it, folding his hands in his lap, but seeming rather twitchy. Alice supposed she shouldn't pay much attention to it, for when had he ever _not_ been so? "I actually wanted to speak to you about something," she began. "Something rather...important, you might say?"

He leaned forward a bit, eyes brightening, "Oh please do! What's important to you is also important to me, you know."

"Yes, I know, which is why I wanted to ask you..." she paused for a beat, "...if you still write your captivating poems?"

For a moment it appeared as though he would become inhibited and give some vague and unrevealing answer, but after the initial alarm of the inquiry wore off, and his face softened significantly from the stiffness the muscles there had been besieged by. He lowered his head, avoiding meeting her eyes, "I _have been_, yes, as of late." He stopped like Alice had just before, then said quietly, "There was a period of time where I simply could not. I - that is to say, I had no..._inspiration_." Still he did not look at her - it was odd for someone who normally had no care in the world, but she understood why he could not. He had just admitted something that she never thought he would.

Alice nodded, helpless in keeping her face emptied of emotion as she formed a short reply, "I...I see." She could do nothing about it - her eyes filled with tears.

The Hatter's eyes flicked up to look at her, noticing her expression straight away, he said in nothing short of a panicked tone, "Oh no, no! Please don't cry...I'm sorry! I did not mean to - "

She silenced him by raising her hand. "My dear friend, you have done nothing wrong. In fact what you have said is quite the opposite."

He tilted his head to the side only just, "What I have said?" Alice thought for a moment that he had forgotten, but no, for he was aware of how his words had effected her. "You...you understand?" again he sounded blameless, and she nodded once more. The Hatter's smile in return was a moving one. "You understand," he repeated wistfully, this time in an affirmation, and reached out to gently wipe away the tears that had escaped the young woman's eyes - much to her disgrace - with the tips of his fingers.

"You still have yet to explain many things to me." When his brow knit together in confusion, Alice elucidated, "A long time ago" - it felt odd putting it like that, though it was very true for him - "you said that you would tell me what some of your poems mean."

She couldn't be certain if he was in a particularly disclosing frame of mind or not. What he had told her minutes before had been a spur of the moment confession. He was not one to admit such personal things about himself often, focused instead on light and trivial matters, he himself being a usually carefree soul. But the look in his inhuman eyes, both when he had answered her question and when she mentioned that which had already come to pass was very poignant, as if he were profoundly living the words of one of his own works in that instance of time. '_Unspoken words plague me_...' - she remembered it well and empathized with the poor man, knowing how difficult it was for him to express himself any other way then through his quirky little actions and - obviously - his care for his craft.

At last, "Alice...I do not believe that the time is right for- "

For a second time he was interrupted, but not by the woman before him, but instead by a piercing scream from outside Alice's living quarters. The two were on their feet immediately, the Hatter quick to peer out and see what was happening. The commotion steadily rose to utter bedlam, the whole populace of the encampment in a state of terror. Alice joined her friend just in time to see an animalistic shape rush by the large tent - her stomach dropped, ice racing up and down her spine. She backed away from the entrance, breathing quickly with dread. "Hatter!" she cried, "Do not let them see you!"

"It would seem as though they are not here for solely us, milady," he stated darkly, motioning for her to return to his side. "Look there," and he pointed to the nearest fire.

One of the creatures had taken up a blazing piece of firewood, its jaws not seemingly affected by the heat at all - a peculiar thing indeed considering how easily they went down with just a bit of pressure on their bones. It took the wood over to the nearest tent and touched the fire to the cloth surface, the shelter going up in flames in an instant. More of the animals had followed the lead of the first, one by one burning the temporary lodgings to the ground. Alice and the Hatter wasted no time in making an escape. With a knife she found, Alice sliced a line down the flat back of the tent's wall and left everything behind, her friend following after her. They ran for the cover of the forest, the scent of smoke beginning to grow unbearable as the camp burned. There was only a small area of ground to cross before the trees and undergrowth could swallow them up, but it proved difficult to accomplish without drawing attention to their selves. Alice, after all, wasn't by any means as colorful as those who surrounded her, and stuck out like a sore thumb. Still though, in the end they both made it without being detected by the creatures.

Once far enough into the foliage, they dropped down low to the ground, far enough away as not to be seen, but close enough to watch the devastation. Alice noticed that the Hatter looked inconsolable watching his fellow people losing everything they had worked so hard to hide from this enemy. Barabbas Thayer had burned their lands before, Alice had seen the end result. It was hell on the other side of the mountains. And now he had returned from the shadows to wipe out those who remained very slowly. It was plain to see that his intention was not to kill off the people first, but instead to decimate them gradually by initially disposing of their shelters and belongings, forcing them to wander aimlessly through the forests and barren lands, one at a time succumbing to death.

Someone ran by the pair's hiding spot, pursued by one of the animals, a piece of burning wood in its mouth. It stopped at the edge of the tree line, however and stood there, watching the figure of the one whom it had chased retreat into the darkness. It was so close to Alice and the Hatter - Alice _knew_ that it would know of their presence before long. There it waited until a glimpse of another one of its kind nearing the forest's edge caused it to act.

It dropped the source of fire into the dried grass that grew around the rim of the clearing, as did the other that Alice could see.

A blaze came to life directly in front of where she and the Hatter were concealed.

They were up and moving again sooner than the creature who had started the fire could turn away.

The last task of Thayer's minions was all too clear now.

The forest was to be destroyed, and so the means of visual suppression for the now dispossessed members of the alit encampment.

**A/N: Well, there y'all have it! First chapter in a looong time. I kind of want to finish this up, so I'll be trying to update more frequently.**

**Thank you for reading. Actually, does anyone still read this? If you do, I would love to hear from you! Do be so kind as to leave a review if you still read and like this fic o' mine :D**


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